


Gentle Love

by orphan_account



Series: Gentle Love [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Depression, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Graphic Violence, Romance, misunderstandings galore
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2016-06-21
Packaged: 2018-07-10 21:41:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 15
Words: 39,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7009174
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You work at a Nerd Shop. When a couple skeletons find your store, you're thrown into a whole new world of misadventures. Misadventures that may or may not make you a target to the public eye.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1: An Awkward Situation

You were fiddling with the browser on your register computer when you heard a faint tinkling sound. Out of habit, you called out “Welcome to Nerd Heaven, let me know if I can help,” before you even looked up from the screen. Once you did though, you jolted back and stared incredulously at the sight before you. 

It was a skeleton. A monster right there in the middle of your nerd shop. You'd heard about the recent migration of the newly-discovered monsters into other areas outside of Mount Ebott, but you'd never actually seen one outside your TV screen. It was a big slap of reality for you. This wasn't just some fairy tale on TV, this was real. 

“H-how can I help you sir?” You tried and failed not to stutter. Fuck, how racist could you get? You wondered how many people had already reeled back at him like that just in the span of one day? 

He was a short dude, with sneakers, basketball shorts and a T-shirt on for one sports team or another (as indicative by where you worked, you weren't much of a sports person). He had his hands tucked into his pockets, and he glanced up at you lazily. 

“i'm looking for action figures. you guys got any?” 

You nodded furiously, anxious to look like you were taking this all in stride. 

“Back row,” you said as you gestured, “We have some of the more rare ones locked up. Let me know if you wanna look at them.” 

He gave you a curt nod and made his way through the aisles. You felt a thrill of excitement at meeting a monster, a real monster! Probably down the road monsters wouldn't be such a novelty, but for now? It was a skeleton! A living breathing skeleton, as if some wizard had brought a science classroom exhibit to life. 

Suddenly, he surprised you by running at you. 

“hide me,” he hissed, as if frightened. Without a word from you he hopped over the wraparound counter and dived down underneath the counter at your feet. As soon as his head went under, the store door opened once more and another skeleton came through, this one much taller. 

“Uh...uh...Welcome to Nerd Heaven...let me know if I can help?” you said timidly. 

“Yes! Human! I have a very important question to ask you!” 

You glanced down at the skeleton who was currently giving you a pointed look. 

“S-sure?” 

“What action figures would Santa recommend?” 

The sheer innocence of the question caught you off guard. You let out a nervous laugh, but caught the eye of the skeleton on the floor who was giving you a death glare. 

“Um...well, we have action figures in the back row if you'd like to look...” you hesitated. 

“But Human surely you know Santa's recommendations?” He was taller than you by about a foot, and that normally would have intimidated you if he wasn't currently giving you puppy dog eyes. 

The floor skeleton slapped at your ankles, pointing towards the back row urgently.

“Yeah...okay dude. I can show you Santa's recommendations.” 

“Thank you!” 

You slipped out of the counter gate and grabbed the exhibit key just in case. 

“Well, old superhero action figures are coming back pretty strong this year, like Captain America and Iron Man and stuff. Batman is always...fun,” you hesitated. The tall skeleton was watching you, enraptured by your action figure lesson. “There are some collectibles that came out with the more recent video games that are pretty cool, too. I personally like the transformers collectibles that came out recently.” 

“What about anime?” 

“Oh yeah dude totally,” you answered, feeling more comfortable with his questions. He seemed to at least have a basic understanding of the different anime you showed him and he started getting really excited when you unlocked the exhibit cabinet to show him the bandai Dragon Ball Z figures. 

“I know that one!” he crowed, “There's lots of different battle scenarios! I've watched all the seasons.” 

“Cool! Yeah DBZ is a classic,” you agreed, letting him hold the ones he seemed interested in. 

“I am going to put this one down and this one down!” he said happily, holding the two decisions in either hand. 

“Down where?” you asked lamely. 

“On my letter to Santa of course!” 

Oh. Ooooh. You got it now. 

“That's a great idea,” you said encouragingly. You were delighted with how carefully he put the action figures back up, careful not to break them. 

“Thank you Nerd Heaven human!” he called out as he walked back out the front doors. 

“No problem! Come back any time!” you called after him. 

He left, the tinkling of the bell the only sound left. 

You leaned against the counter, peering down at the skeleton who was currently picking himself up from what looked like an awkward position. 

“So you're Santa huh?” you guessed. 

“psh, I told him about coming in to see what he might want. didn't think he'd do it today. Put me in a bit of a tight spot.” 

You laughed, holding out a hand to help pull him up. He accepted, rocking to his feet and then climbing over the counter. 

“so what were the figures he decided on?” he asked. 

A few explanations and a card swipe later, he introduced himself. 

“my name's sans. sans the skeleton. my brother papyrus is the guy you met earlier.” 

You were busying yourself with wrapping the two action figures in Christmas wrapping paper. 

“Well it's nice to meet you,” you said cheerfully, truly meaning it, but faking the cheer. You were always sugary sweet while at work. It made sure bitchy people didn't get too smart with you. 

“How long have you guys been in the city?” you asked. 

“only a week now. we've barely moved in. we're actually just down the road from here, believe it or not.” 

“Wow, that close to Main Street huh? You guys must've landed a deal, real estate this side of the city isn't cheap.”

“you have no idea,” he laughed, “but we wanted to be in this area of the city. we nerd it through the grapevine that this area would be safest for monsters.” 

You stared at him, trying to ignore his God. Awful. Pun. 

“Yeah that would make sense,” you continued, and his eyes narrowed slightly. As if your lack of response was a challenge, “I heard that other areas of the city were protesting and shit, so I'd be careful dude.” 

“good talking with you dude,” he said, emphasizing the last word with a hint of a snicker, “thanks for the quid pro bro.” 

“I feel personally attacked right now,” you said, refusing to give in to the smile that played on your lips. He shrugged and walked out of the doors with the packaged action figures, a subtle gesture of his hand the only indication of a goodbye. 

The tinkle of the bell died and you tapped your fingers. Silence once again overtook the nerd shop. You knew there wouldn't be anybody else until the next rush at 5. In an hour. You sighed and turned on the TV. Maybe you could watch a TV show. Your boss was gone for the day so you wouldn't get in trouble...and technically you weren't even leaving the register. Sliding in a DVD, you settled into the register, your head inclined to watch the TV on the opposite wall. 

After about 30 minutes the phone erupted beside you. You snatched up the remote and muted the TV, not wanting to appear unprofessional (though you did work in a nerd shop. What the fuck did they expect?). You answered the phone. 

“Nerd Heaven, this is _____ speaking, how can I help you today?” 

“hey, this is sans from earlier. I think I might have left my wallet at the store. could you check for me?” 

“Sure,” you muttered, surprised to hear his voice again. 

Your eyes grazed the counter, not seeing anything. But there! Something black and square on the display shelf beside the counter. 

“Found it! I'll keep it safe for you,” you said, scooping up the wallet and setting it on the shelf behind the counter. 

“actually we're kinda hosting a party at the moment. will you still be open around 9?” 

“Uh, no. We close at 6...”

“damn,” he said, his voice quiet on the other end. 

You felt it. That damn pull to be a nice person again. You really really really just wanted to go home and lay in your underwear and play video games all night. It was Friday! You deserved a night free of stress. Just you and your laptop and...a lingering sense of guilt that you weren't a nice person when you could have been. 

Fuck...you cursed yourself in your head. 

“Hey, you know what? I can drop it off when I get off work,” you offered. 

“you'd do that?” he asked, sounding surprised. 

“Sure. You said it's not too far away anyway.” 

You almost wished he'd decline. The faster you got home the better. 

“sure, thanks.” he answered. 

Great. 

 

 

 

* * *

6: The light switched off at 6. People still there? Cars still in the parking lot? Children casually throwing DVD cases everywhere? The lights. Went. Off. People complained and left the building in a hissy fit, but the important part was that they left. You hated nothing more than when a giant family decided to come in literally two minutes before closing time and then got mad when you let them know that you were closing in two minutes. Those prissy haughty Moms never thought that you'd actually do it. But you did. Fuck them. 

Sans' wallet tucked firmly in your pocket, you reread the scrap of paper where you'd scribbled their street address. Mayberry...Mayberry...didn't Mayberry run directly parallel to Main? You'd never been good with directions, but Sans had been good at explaining things. Within five minutes you were parked outside the house. It was a nice house, a bit small, but you expected nothing more. If any house had more than two rooms in this neighborhood it sold for a million or more. Your eyes rolled as you slid out of the driver's seat. You brought out the wallet and held onto it tightly as you walked up the cement path. It looked so...suburban. Not at all what your daydreams had constructed monster houses to be. You rang the doorbell and stepped back a few steps, waiting patiently. You could hear music and talking inside. 

Oh that's right they were hosting a party or something...

The door was opened by another monster. Blue and scaly, with a shock of blood-red hair on her head, this monster looked like she could eat you for breakfast. You gulped without thinking about it. 

“I'm...uh...here to drop off Sans' wallet?” you said nervously. She broke into a wild grin, putting a hand on your shoulder and practically pulling you into the house. 

“Sans is in the kitchen last I saw him,” she said in a gruff voice, then left your side to return to the party. A decent gathering of monsters were all there in the living room, their varied conversations making a wall of sound that made you a bit uncomfortable. However, not to be deterred from your good deed, you made your way into what you assumed would be the kitchen. 

You assumed right! But there was no Sans. Instead, a very loud and boisterous Papyrus looked up from whatever he was mixing and gasped. 

“Nerd Heaven Human!” he called out affectionately, “It is so good to see you again!” You grinned, feeling very out of place, “But what are you doing here?” he asked, looking confused. 

“I...uh...I found Sans' wallet,” you started, then started to sweat, “On the street. His address was on his license so I thought I'd be a good person and drop it by...” 

“What a kind and admirable act!” he proclaimed, and you felt a blush starting on your nose. 

“Oh it's...not that big of a deal...” you muttered, “But do you know where he is?” 

“I believe he went up to his room almost twenty minutes ago! That lazybones is probably sleeping during the party! Come Nerd Heaven Human, we will wake him together!” He grabbed hold of your shoulder and, much like the blue monster, dragged you down a hallway until he stopped in front a door. Papyrus jiggled the doorknob. Finding it locked, he yelled out, “Sans! Get your butt out into the party! A nice lady came by to return your wallet to you and you were not there to greet her!” 

“go away papyrus,” a sleepy voice sounded from inside the bedroom. 

You really did not feel like you belonged here at all. All these people...all these monsters...it felt like you had just walked into some big family ordeal. You didn't want to encroach anymore. 

“Don't worry about it,” you told Papyrus, “I'll leave his wallet with you and you can give it to him.” 

“Nonsense!” Papyrus cried, drawing himself up to his full height, surprising you into submission. The guy could be intimidatingly big...  
“I'm coming in and forcing you out!” he cried. With a very specific twist of the doorknob and a shove with his shoulder the door popped open. 

And there Sans was. Sitting on his bed. His eyes wide in horror. Your eyes wide in horror. Papyrus' eyes wide in horror. A glowing blue dick between Sans' fingers, midstroke. 

It couldn't have been more than a second, but for you it felt like an eternity. With a cry of despair the skeleton grabbed a blanket off his bed and covered himself and with a cry of despair Papyrus slammed the door shut and turned his back to it, barricading himself between you and that awful, awful situation. With a silent, gut-wrenching stare you handed the wallet over to Papyrus, who took it without a word, and walked down the hallway, through the kitchen, past the crowded living room and out the front door. You blared the radio on the way home and didn't say a word until you passed your front door. 

Then you began to laugh. Hysterically laugh. This was one of the most awkward goddamn situations you had ever been in and it was hilarious! The look on his face. The horrified shriek that Papyrus made. You felt a bit guilty for taking so much pleasure in their pain but good god, you couldn't have timed that better.


	2. Chapter 2: An Evening of Stars

It was Saturday evening. You'd already near forgotten about Friday's events, having spent all night and all morning playing video games. You were almost all the way through the new Fallout DLC when you got a call on your cell. It was from Petey, the guy who took your shifts on the weekend. 

“Sup Petey?” you answered the phone. 

“Hey _____. There's this monster who's been asking about you yesterday and today. He asked me where you lived and of course I said I couldn't tell him. He said he wanted to apologize to you about something? He seemed really serious so I just wanted to let you know. He gave me his number in case you wanted to call him?” 

You snorted, then felt a blush dusting your nose. 

“Was he really short or really tall?” 

“Really fucking tall,” Petey answered. 

“Yeah...okay send me his cell and I'll get him out of your hair,” you said. 

“Thanks. I'll text it to you.” 

You hung it up and soon after your phone dinged with Petey's text. There was the number. 

Why did he feel the need to apologize? He wasn't the one who'd been caught with his pants down. 

You added the number as a contact and gave it a call. It was answered on the first ring. 

“Hello? The Great Papyrus speaking!” 

You snickered, “Hello The Great Papyrus. This is _____ from Nerd Heaven.” 

The voice on the other end gasped loudly, “I wanted to sincerely apologize for the awkward situation I put you through yesterday night!”

“Dude it's not a big deal. Seriously.” 

“Weeeeell,” he said, not sounding convinced, “I wanted to invite you over for a Spaghetti dinner as a token of apology!” 

You laughed, “You don't need a token of apology when I've already forgiven you.” 

“But it would help to feel better about this whole mess!” he implored. Wow.

He must really be torn about this.

“You know what? Sure. Spaghetti dinner sounds great,” you accepted. Why the hell not? You were sure you could find a time sometime next week. And you were pretty interested in learning more about the monsters, you admitted to yourself. 

“Great! Where can I pick you up?”

“Wait...when is this Spaghetti dinner?” 

“Tonight! The sooner the air is cleared, the soon we can go back to being best friends!” 

Your blush returned. Best friends? What was with this guy? 

“I-is that okay?” he muttered in a quiet voice. 

You hesitated, glancing at your TV screen. Your Mom kept nagging at you to go out there and make friends anyways. How bad could it be?

“Tonight is fine. Pick me up at my apartment.” 

* * *

When Papyrus said 5 sharp he meant 5 sharp. He must have been waiting outside your door because the millisecond your watch buzzed for 5 there was a knock. 

You opened it up and smiled to see Papyrus grinning down at you. He was wearing basketball shorts very similar to Sans', and he had a T-shirt on that said, “All Star”. His expression turned to one of ultimate sadness as he grasped your shoulders. 

“I am very, very sorry.” 

He pulled you into a hug and, unsure of what to do with your hands, you nervously pat his back in response. 

“I forgive you, dude,” you normally would have insisted that it hadn't bothered you in the slightest, but he seemed so sincerely distraught that you figured just saying what he wanted to hear would make things better. 

It did! He grinned at you, releasing you to grab your purse. You followed the lanky skeleton down the stairs of your apartment complex, running out of breath as you tried to keep up with is highly energized steps. 

You stopped short when he led you to a bright red convertible. 

“Wait...what?” you stared in disbelief, “No way is this yours.” 

“Yes way!” he said happily.   
You got into the passenger's side. You'd never actually ridden in a convertible before, and you couldn't help but feel your heart begin racing in your chest. 

“Let's go!” Papryus cried triumphantly, and he backed up, then shot out of the parking lot, kicking up gravel as the engine revved. You laughed obnoxiously, feeling like a little kid again. He sped down the street, going way past the speed limit and yet somehow avoiding every cop in the city. You had arrived at the Skeleton house in no time flat. Your hair looked like it came straight out of the grudge, but being around Papyrus, you really didn't care. The way he was grinning at you made you feel like it was okay to be a little kid again. You ran your fingers through your hair a couple times, but gave up when it kept catching on knots. 

Papyrus opened the door for you and you walked in, appreciating the quiet, empty house. It had seemed rather intimidating when it was so full of people, but with the living room empty and the front windows open, allowing sunlight to stream into the room, it looked rather beautiful. There was a stone fireplace with a mantle full of pictures. There were pieces of simple, silly art on the wall that you could bet Papyrus had made himself. There was a scrappy looking TV and a scrappy looking couch, but despite the poor quality of the furniture, the room just had a very “home”-like quality to it. Papyrus made his way into the kitchen and you set your purse down by the door. 

You followed him into the kitchen, taking a seat at the small, two chair table they had pressed up against a far corner. 

“So Spaghetti huh?” you said, trying to instigate a conversation. 

“Yes! I am a master chef! My spaghetti will wow you into speechlessness!”

“Well I can't wait,” you laughed, “Can I help you?” 

Papyrus gave you the chore of chopping onions. That was definitely something you could do. 

“How long have you been cooking?” you pried. 

“About 6 months,” he answered, a bit sheepishly, “I started getting cooking lessons from Undyne when I started training to be a Royal Guard!” 

“That sounds official. What's a Royal Guard?” 

“It's a Guard specially trained to protect and serve the royal monster family. It's always been my dream to be a guardsman!” 

“Good for you Papyrus,” you said finishing up the onions, “What do you want me to do with these?” 

“Put them in the skillet,” he said good-naturedly. You did so and began helping him open the tomato sauce cans. 

“Of course, now that we've made it to the surface, the royal guard has been disbanded,” he chattered, and you paused, listening. 

“Undyne gave me a very important job of keeping the grounds for the Monster Diplomacy Center!” 

“You...you're a lawn keeper?” You glanced back at him. A light orange blush had appeared on his cheeks. 

“W-well...” he stammered, looking more and more crestfallen every second that passed. You panicked. 

“That's really cool!” you rushed, hoping to mend whatever you'd broken, “That'll give you...good experiences.” 

He gave you a smile. You knew that you had touched a nerve that no fake compliment could fix. That might have to be addressed later. 

The front door opened and closed. 

“paps I'm home,” said a tired voice from the living room. You immediately felt awkward...Papyrus wouldn't have invited you over without telling Sans about it, right? As Sans walked into the kitchen you could read the answer on his face. His face turned a violent blush of blue and he glanced down at the floor. 

“S-Sans!” greeted Papyrus, glancing from Sans to you and back, “I didn't expect you home so soon!” 

“I'm feeling pretty tired today paps, don't wait up for me,” murmured Sans and with a rush he pushed past you and ran into his bedroom. The door slammed shut and was followed but a very final, very prominent click of the lock. 

Papyrus cooked in silence for a full minute, his eyes seeming strained as he bent over the pot of boiling noodles. You weren't sure what to do. Cautiously, you went to stand beside him, staring down at the rapidly boiling noodles. 

“You okay?” you asked. 

“Sans has been very mad at me since yesterday,” he said, his voice so quiet you had to strain to hear it. 

Papyrus suddenly shook his head, as if banishing any thoughts he was having. 

“Anyways, back to the spaghetti!” 

You debated pushing further, but figured that he could deal in his own time. The two of you got the spaghetti done quickly. Papyrus made a plate for Sans, but it stayed untouched on the kitchen table as the two of you settled down on the couch with TV trays. 

“What TV shows do you like?” Papyrus asked.

“Oh I'm down for anything. But I always love a good documentary,” you suggested. He was quick to comply and soon the two of you were eating your spaghetti and watching a historical documentary on the civil war. The spaghetti was actually quite good. You'd had to stop him from adding sprinkles to the plates as garnish, but all things considered, Papyrus wasn't half bad. Then again, you were known to eat anything with the price tag of “free”. 

“Have humans really fought themselves so much?” Papyrus asked, a sad tinge in his voice. His eyes watched the TV intently, flinching at the graphic deaths portrayed by actors in the documentary.  
You were surprised at his question. It was pretty much considered normal that there were constant wars. But from a Monster's perspective, a race that rarely fought or argued or did anything cruel or mean-spirited, what could humans look like? 

Maybe we're the real monsters, you thought with a wry smile. 

“Yeah we've pretty much had wars since the beginning. Humans are pretty hateful towards each other.”

“It's so sad,” he said, and his voice really did sound like he was about to cry. 

“Why don't we watch something else?” you suggested, not wanting Papyrus to get all emotional on you. 

He nodded, flipping the channel to a mindless comedy. The two of you laughed at the jokes for a while, but eventually you started talking once more. 

“You are not hateful,” Papyrus pointed out. 

“Hell yeah I am,” you laughed, “I hate a lot of people.” 

“But not for dumb reasons...” he said, as if he were talking to himself, “You're the first human to talk to me like you wanted to get to know me.” 

Fuck, that bastard was gonna make you cry. The idea of living in a hostile world after hoping so long to be free? You could imagine a situation like that breaking someone. But Papyrus didn't seem broken. A little sad if you really looked, but not broken. He seemed to have a heart full of hope, and that was incredibly inspiring. 

“I do want to get to know you Paps,” you grinned, trying out the nickname. He grinned widely at you.

“Then we shall! And we will be the bestest best friends ever!” 

“Yep,” you agreed happily. 

You laid back on the couch after finishing your plate. You were stuffed and happy, but the living room was getting a bit hot now, and you could feel yourself begin to sweat. 

“Hey, you wanna go for a walk?” you asked Papyrus. 

“Absolutely!” he said loudly, his voice nearly grating on your ears. He disentangled himself from the TV tray and ran to the hallway. 

“Sans! The human and I are going on a walk! You are welcome to come along!” 

You didn't hear the reply, but Papyrus said, “I will be! And I have the human with me so don't worry!” 

He came back and you opened the door for him. The two of you made your way down the sidewalk. The sun was setting slowly, the sky turning a dim orange and cotton-candy pink. You stared at the colors as you walked, a bit distracted by how beautiful it was. Big fat clouds floated by, altering the scene every few seconds. A giant mash of colors and wind and condensed water, swimming around like a broken stream. 

“Wow,” was all you could really say. 

You glanced back down to Papyrus, who was staring at you as the both of you walked. 

“What?” you asked, feeling self-concious. 

“N-nothing!” he said, then quickly changed the subject, “The stars are my favorite part of the sky!” 

“Is that so?” you said, a small smile playing on your lips, “Then come on! I wanna show you something.” 

You grabbed his wrist, pulling him along. When had you gotten so comfortable with him? In the course of an evening? You smiled to yourself, you'd never really known anyone like Papyrus before. Something about him just put you at ease, and that was something that not many people could do. You didn't look back at him as you pulled him through street after street. If you had, you would have seen the bright blush on his cheeks and the wide eyes that stared into the back of your head intently. 

Just as the sun was slipping the last of it's rays away, you stopped in front of a playground in the middle of the city park. 

“A...playground?” he asked, pulling his hand out of yours. 

“Yeah! Follow me!” you said, heading to a nearby tree. Papyrus did so, his face slightly confused. You climbed the tree, one branch at a time. The path up the tree was worn, making it simple to climb. Once you got to a specific spot, you slid along the branch until you sat above the playground, the bottoms of your feet scraping the roof of the house. You dropped to the roof with a clunk and turned around to help Papyrus down. Him being so tall, he definitely did not need your help. Shuffling along the branch, he could reach the roof without dropping down and so he simply stood up from the branch beside you. 

“Come on,” you said, your eyes glowing. You hadn't been up here in years, but something about hanging out with Papyrus reminded you of it. You walked to the edge of the house, then laid down, your legs dangling off the edge and your arms resting behind your head. Papyrus joined you, laying down beside you. He pulled his arms behind his head in the same manner as you. 

“This is the best way to watch the stars,” you breathed, feeling nostalgia in the air. 

He didn't reply. The two of you lay in silence as the first stars began to appear. It was a perfect night for stargazing, a mostly clear sky, with glowing, mystical clouds making their way through the sky every once in a while. The stars peered out as the darkness closed in and you felt yourself slip into the daydreams that only twilight could bring about. It was a quiet, fragile feeling, pulsing with the summer air, the sounds of the crickets as they started up their chorus. 

“I'd come out here every night when I was a kid,” you said in a whisper. You didn't want to raise your voice, there was a magic in the air and you were afraid to break it. The stars grew in intensity, the sun completely gone now. White wisps of clouds lined the sides of your vision, but the stars came out in full, draping across the entire sky. It felt endless, like a beautiful void. 

“I always feel so small looking at the stars,” Papyrus whispered, it seemed he didn't want to disturb things as much as you did. 

“Same here,” you smiled. 

“But then I remember that I am a star as well,” he said, his voice growing excitedly before he quieted himself. 

You giggled softly, “You are a star, Papyrus.” 

“What I mean is,” he continued, seeming unsatisfied, “...You know how what we see is actually just the light from a star that's already gone? That's what I want to do. The stars are so beautiful and I can make things more beautiful. If I really really try.” 

You got what he was trying to say, “Like...you want to leave an impact?” 

“Exactly!” he said, growing louder again. It broke the silence, but to your surprise it didn't ruin the moment. 

“I think that being kind can leave an impact just like a star's light...” he said, growing soft once more. 

“Wow...Papyrus that's really beautiful,” you said after a few minutes. 

He didn't reply, and you turned to look at him. He was staring up into the massive sky, his eyes small pinpricks that reminded you of the stars themselves. His face was filled with emotion, so much so that you felt as if you were encroaching on a very personal moment. 

“I'm glad to have a friend like you,” he said finally. 

You felt your heart flutter in happiness. Papyrus was just so damn...likable. You wanted him to like you. You wanted him to want to be friends with you, like the desperate attention-hog you were. You silently cursed at yourself. This was how you'd lost your friends before. You were so damn needy and you just loved your friends so much that it scared people away. 

I'm not going to scare Papyrus away, you swore to yourself. He was too special, you could already feel it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll get the next chapter out within a few days, depending on my schoolwork. I hope you guys enjoy this. Much love.


	3. Chapter 3: Happy Birthday Sans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: contains drinking, cussing and a lot of blushing

It was Monday once more, goddamnit. The weekend had gone by so fast and here you were at the beginning of yet another long week of work. There were two regulars browsing the comics, but you weren't too worried about them. However, you were definitely worried about the guy who had just walked in. Wearing a graphic Tee with a wolf on it, tucked snugly into his blue jeans, he had all the makings of a potential customer, but the way he paused in the doorway when he saw you made you internally groan. 

You knew this type of guy. You knew it way too well. 

“Welcome to Nerd Heaven,” you recited, hating yourself for instigating any sort of spoken contact, “Let me know if I can help you.” 

He nodded wildly, a blush crawling up his face. He nervously glanced you up and down and you tried so hard not to roll your eyes you almost gave yourself a headache. He went back into the aisles somewhere, but he kept peering out, obviously not really paying attention to the merchandise. You knew what was gonna happen. He was gonna come to the register with a goofy grin and a handful of comics. He was gonna awkwardly start a conversation about some comic book or anime he liked. You would answer all his questions and give him pained smiles and then at the very end he would ask for your number. You'd say no. He'd push further. You'd say no again, this time with an apologizing smile. He'd stand in place, glancing around, not sure what to do. He'd say, “Are you sure?” and you would give him a “Yes” that was a bit more forceful than you meant too and then he'd run off and not return for another two months. 

You played with your hair, already annoyed at the guy despite him not even starting to talk to you. He was approaching the counter, an armful of comics at the go. He dropped them onto the counter and you started checking them out quickly. 

“Did you find everything okay?” you asked.

“Yeah,” he said, a nervous laugh slipping out of him, “I...I'm really glad you guys have the latest X-Men comics. But I figured...with the new movie coming out...you would.” 

You gave a polite laugh, your eyes humorless. 

“So...do you read X-men?” he asked, beginning to sweat. 

“I can't say that I do,” you responded. 

“What are you doing in a nerd shop then?” he asked, another nervous laugh sliding through his teeth. 

“I enjoy anime and video games mostly. Never was huge into comics,” you said. 

“Oh. I can understand that.” 

Awkward. Fucking. Silence. 

“What anime do you like?” 

You debated saying Dragon Ball Z, to get him riled up about how that wasn't “a real anime” or whatever, but right as you were about to decide, the door to the store opened. 

“Human!” a familiar voice rang out. 

You glanced, a smile instantly on your face, “Oh hey Paps!” 

Papyrus walked in, Sans on his heels, looking like he really didn't want to be there. The guy in front of you gaped like a fish, looking from you to Papyrus and back. 

“Tonight we are hosting a birthday party for Sans!” Papyrus cried, his voice practically shaking the whole building. 

“Wow another party huh? Happy Birthday Sans,” you said, grinning at the short skeleton. 

He nodded, playing it cool. 

“We wanted to invite you to the party!” Papyrus said, stepping up to the counter. 

“W-wow. Really?” you weren't sure how to feel about that, “You only just met me though...”

“And we liked you immediately!” Papyrus grinned. Sans said nothing, his expression blank. You couldn't help but feel like this “we” Papyrus was talking about was a bit one-sided. 

“Um...only if Sans is okay with it,” you said slowly. 

“Of course he is!” Papyrus practically roared, his expression delighted. You stared pointedly at Sans, an eyebrow raised. Thank God the guy could pick up on cues. He gave you a small shrug and then a nod. You got the message perfectly, “I don't really care one way or another, but Papyrus is excited about it soooo...” 

You knew how that felt. You used to bend over backwards to make your sister happy. 

“Okay then, I'll come,” you said with a small smile. 

“Wowie! This is going to be so much fun!” Papyrus said, practically dancing in place. His attention was caught by something in a nearby aisle and he went off to investigate. You finished up checking out the stranger's comics. He was practically red now from being so close to such an intimidating group of monsters, and when you handed him the bag he split out of the store like nobody's business. 

“Hey,” you called to Sans. He looked up at you lazily. 

“sup?” he asked. 

“Go pick out a gift I can get for you,” you told him. 

He held up a hand, “no need.” 

“I'll get you underwear otherwise,” you warned and he chuckled. 

“seriously,” he continued. 

“I am being completely serious,” you said, a cautionary look in your eye. 

“i...don't want anything for my birthday,” he emphasized. 

You gave a small shrug. 

“Kay dude, don't say I didn't warn you. What time's the party?” 

“5. we figured you'd come later.” 

“Actually I can get there at 5. I only work half day today.”

“cool,” he replied and an awkward silence ensued. 

“Okay human!” Papyrus called as he came back to the counter, “Sans and I have to go prepare for the party! We will see you soon!” 

“See ya!” you called back to their retreating forms. 

You were so getting him underwear. 

* * *

You arrived at the Skeleton house around 5:10. There was a car parked outside already, and you started worrying about how big the party was going to be. You knocked on the door and Papyrus answered. 

“Human! I am so glad you came!” He led you in, grabbing the gift from you and putting it on the pile of gifts on the floor next to the couch. 

“Undyne! Alphys! Meet the human!” he said, pausing for a second, “I do not think I know your name.”

“It's _____,” you said with a smile. A couple monsters got up from the couch. You recognized one of them, the blue scaly one from the party on Friday. 

“Sup, nerd! I'm Undyne,” she said, holding out a hand. You grabbed her hand and then nearly dropped your purse as she shook it violently. 

“A-a-and I'm Alphys,” said a small voice behind her. You peered around Undyne and saw a small yellow monster with glasses. Papyrus left the living room, hurrying into the kitchen. 

“It's nice to meet you guys,” you said, “I'm guessing Papyrus already told you that I work at a nerd store,” you laughed. 

“What's a nerd store?” Undyne said, glancing at Alphys. Alphys, however was busy giving you the biggest smile you'd ever seen. 

“A-a n-n-nerd store? Like do they s-sell anime?” 

“Oh tons,” you replied. Why had Undyne called you a nerd if she didn't know...you dropped it, listening as Alpys started talking your ear off and asking questions about Nerd Heaven. You set your purse down, answering all questions politely and listening happily as she chattered about her favorite anime. She was gushing, talking so fast you could barely understand her, but you'd had experiences with people like this for as long as you could remember, and so you waited, working to understand what you could. 

“That sounds really interesting. I can't say I've ever seen Mew Mew Kissie Cutie but I'll give it a try,” you offered when she took a break to breath. Undyne was practically beaming at you. 

“hey _____,” said a voice suddenly beside you. You jolted, then turned to see Sans, giving you a snarky grin. 

“Hey,” you said, giving an evil grin back, “I picked out your present real special. It's under there if you wanna open it.” 

“under where?” he asked before he could stop himself. 

A beat of silence. He looked up at you with eyes filled with hurt and betrayal. You dissolved into laughter, laughing so hard your sides started to hurt. Eventually he joined in, leaving Undyne and Alphys to chuckle softly, confused. 

“I have never gotten that to work ever,” you gasped when you could finally breath. 

“i'll give you kudos for that one. well played,” he admitted, “i don't mind being the butt of a joke.” 

You dissolved into laughter again, nearly crying this time. He had a shit eating grin on his face as he laughed along with you. After you'd settled down, the four of you started a discussion. You found out that Sans and Alphys worked together at Rock Hill University in town. 

“No shit,” you said, “That's where I got my degree from.” 

“You have a degree?” asked Undyne, “Then why do you work in a nerd shop?” 

You laughed, ignoring the fact that you were asked this all the time. By your Mother. And your grandparents. And practically any other older figure in your life. 

“Well as soon as you find me a job in art, let me know and I'll quit in a heartbeat,” you said, turning it into a joke. Everyone smiled and laughed a little, allowing the possibly tense situation to die. 

“Cake time!” called Papyrus. Everyone wandered into the kitchen, gathering around Sans as he stood before the candles. He seemed a bit uncomfortable with so many eyes on him. You could relate. Everyone started singing, and you were glad that they sang the normal birthday song and not some monster birthday song. You sang along, watching Papyrus. He looked so happy. His eyes almost seemed to be sparkling with happiness. Sans blew the candles out, then stuffed his hands in his pockets, letting Papyrus cut in front of him to cut the cake. You watched as he casually made his way to the back of the room. Damn...this guy really didn't like much attention did he? 

The cake was sliced into pieces and handed out to everyone. All five of you lounged around the small kitchen, eating the cake and joking around. It was really nice. The party wasn't too big to make you feel uncomfortable, and you enjoyed the company of these monsters. They all had varied personalities, but they were easy to talk to and joke with. Sans seemed to lead the conversation with his well-timed jokes. After a while Papyrus straightened, setting his empty plate down. 

“Okay! We shall now enter the living room so Sans can open his presents!” he declared. Everyone obeyed. You sat down on the floor, facing the couch. Alphys and Undyne settled down on the couch, leaving enough space for Sans to sit cross legged. Papyrus stood close, handing him each present individually. Sans suddenly looked a bit uncomfortable again, and you wondered what made this different than when he was leading the conversation just moments ago. You put the thought aside however, as Sans began to make his way through the presents. A book on quantum physics...a sci-fi novel...a microscope? 

“Wow Sans, I didn't know you were a science geek,” you teased. 

He shrugged, “guilty as charged.”

It was time for your present. Papyrus handed it off to him and Sans gave you a wink. You just watched. He unwrapped the paper, letting the present fall into his lap. 

“Wh-what is that?” asked Papyrus. 

“It's a doorknob,” you answered, “With a reaaaaaaally good lock.” 

A moment of silence passed before Sans erupted into laughter. You joined in and the two of you passed a good minute of breathless laughing. 

“I don't get it!” said Undyne. Alphys shrugged. Papyrus was burning bright orange, but he seemed to relax as Sans laughed harder and harder. 

You felt relieved. You'd made a risky choice for sure, but you wanted to let him know that the incident still wasn't bothering you. And what better way to let him know it wasn't bothering you than to joke about it? 

It had been the right decision. Sans warmed up to you a lot faster after that. Somebody had put on Mystery Science Theater 3000 soon afterwards, but it only played in the background as everybody chatted happily. They were all so fun and interesting, you forgot to be nervous around them. After a while, Undyne left and went into the kitchen. She came back with a tray of multi-colored shot glasses. 

“I brought this special, just for Sans!” she crowed. 

“What are those?” asked Papyrus innocently. 

“Oooooh nothing,” Undyne giggled as she passed one out to everyone. You glanced at the tray. There were so many shot glasses. So many. 

“Everyone's going to drink this, and then we're gonna play a game!” she said, her eyes glancing around evilly. 

Sans stared at the drink, a brow bone raised. 

“Are you sure this a good idea Undyne?” he asked. 

“No time to think! Just drink it!!!” she yelled, “3, 2, 1!” 

You laughed. You knew exactly what they were. If your college years had taught you anything, it was how to identify jello shots. You downed it, feeling game for a bit of excitement tonight. Everyone else downed it as well. Papyrus did so after only a few seconds of hesitation. You wondered if he'd ever taken a shot before. He seemed so innocent...you wouldn't be shocked if he'd never gotten drunk. Alphys and Sans downed theirs like fucking experts. Up and swallowed in a flash. The glasses were passed back to Undyne, who stacked them on the tray which was now balancing on top of the TV. 

“Okay nerds, we're gonna play a rousing game of Never Have I Ever,” she purred. 

Fuck. You were gonna lose so bad. And by lose you knew you meant get plastered drunk.

Shots were passed out once more. 

“I'll start!” Undyne yelled, “Never have I ever...punched someone in the nutsack!”

You laughed out loud. Of course this would be the first one. You threw the shotglass back and everyone looked at you in surprise. 

“You've...punched someone in the nutsack?” Undyne asked. 

“Yeah,” you giggled, thinking about how best to tell the story, “This douche was trying to feel me up at the store. Lots of guys think that just cause I work at a nerd shop I'm free game or something. So I punched his dick. He didn't bother me again.” 

“Hell yeah!” Undyne roared, “I'll drink to that!” 

“Y-y-you're not supposed to d-drink unless you've done the thing, Undyne,” Alphys corrected. 

Undyne waved her words away, downing the shot, “A good dick punch always deserves a shot in it's honor.” 

You laughed. Papyrus was staring at you, his face rather serious. Sans was leaned back against the chair, his shot gone. 

“Wh-Sans?” you asked, desperate to hear his story. Everyone turned and immediately pressed him for the story. 

“one time some kids were bullying Papyrus. this one kid was the absolute worst, saying mean things and shoving him around. i told him to knock it off but he just turned to me and with the snottiest voice i've ever heard and said, “make me!” so I did.” He shrugged, “you'd be surprised how effective this tactic is.” 

Everyone laughed once more, the merriment increasing. Papyrus was the only person who didn't seem to be enjoying himself. 

“Okay Alphys, your turn!” 

“O-o-okay. N-never have I e-e-ever...gone to the m-movie theater.” 

“Woah, really?” you asked, “We'll have to fix that! The movie theater is the bomb.” You took another shot. You were definitely feeling it now. Papyrus stared down at the jello a long moment.

“This is alcohol isn't it...” he asked in a disapproving voice. 

“Yep!” Undyne said, “And you're going to drink it and have fun for Sans' birthday!” 

Papyrus thought for a moment, then shrugged. He didn't drink the shot. 

“You haven't been to the movies either Paps?” you asked. He looked up at you. 

“N-no. I haven't really had time,” he explained. 

You felt a bit sad for him. 

“I'll take you to see a movie sometime, promise.” 

He gave you a big smile. Wow, yeah, you were definitely tipsy by now. 

“Okay ____. Y-y-you're turn,” Alphys said. 

“Hmmm...” you thought for a long moment. 

A-ha. You had one that would stump every one of them. 

“Never have I ever kissed somebody.” 

“Arg!” Undyne yelled, her hand coming up against her heart as if she'd been shot, “That one was too good!” She leaned over and playfully kissed Alphys. 

Oh! You hadn't realized that they were together. You felt a bit silly for not noticing before. You pondered whether you should say something about it, but got distracted when you realized that Papyrus hadn't moved. Sans had already drunk his shot and was grinning lazily at everyone. 

“You've never kissed anyone either?” you asked Papyrus. 

“No...” Papyrus said, his cheeks burning orange once more. 

“Aw come one! Papyrus has to drink another one some time!” Undyne roared, “_____, kiss Papyrus so he has to take a shot!” 

It was your turn to blush. 

“What? N-no!” you stammered. 

Papyrus looked mortified. He sank to the floor, wrapping himself up, his knees covering his face. 

“This is too embarrassing!” he whined. 

“come on bro, she was just teasing,” said Sans, placing a hand on Papyrus' shoulder. Papyrus made a noise like a whine, a soft “Nyeh.” Sans shook his head. 

“It's...your turn Papyrus,” you hesitated. 

“Oh!” he said, his facing rising, “Um...Never have I ever...kicked a meerkat?”

You burst out laughing at how goofy his suggestion was. He blushed again, but you got distracted once more when Undyne downed hers. Your mouth fell open. 

“undyne, what?” asked Sans, barely containing himself. 

“The little fucker was looking at me funny,” she explained. You lost it. So did everyone else. Even Papyrus joined in. She explained a bit more that she worked at the zoo, something that you would not have guessed otherwise. 

The night continued like this for a while until everyone was too drunk to play anymore. Somebody turned up the TV and you all watched Mystery Science Theater 3000, giggling hysterically at the dumb jokes. You ended up with your back resting against the couch, Papyrus right beside you. Throughout the game he had ended up drinking a decent amount. The alcohol hit him a lot faster than it had anyone else, and he was currently passed out against your shoulder. You didn't mind, but his face was really close to yours, and his breath was gently blowing right next to your ear. You must have been drunk as a skunk because you found the tickling in your ear...turned you on a bit. Thankfully it wasn't too bad though, and after a while, Undyne and Alphys left, calling a cab to pick them up. You blushed, remembering that you didn't have any extra money on you at the moment. You'd used the last of it to buy that doorknob. 

“don't worry about heading home tonight,” Sans grunted as he sat back down on the couch, “you can crash on our couch.”

“Really?” you asked, feeling emotional at how kind he was being. 

He laughed, “you're really wasted aren't you?” 

“Yeah...” you muttered, embarrassed. 

“s'fine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG so guess who got sick. Yep. This little trash can. I was super overwhelmed by you guys' support so I spent all day writing and now I'm way ahead of where I thought I would be! Depending on how long I'm out of it, I might be able to post a chapter a day for a while. Yay! 
> 
> Thank you so much for the kind words! It inspired me to keep going! It's gonna get good, trust me ;)


	4. Chapter 4: Rom-Coms Suck

Fuck. 

You felt like your insides were on your outsides. 

With a groan you pulled your phone out of your pocket. It was pretty early in the morning. Normally you'd have started getting ready for work at this time. But you reaaaally didn't want to do that at the moment. You called up Petey. You knew that nerd was up at 6 every morning, in order to fit with his friends' time zones, to play WoW with them. He answered after a few rings. 

“Hey. What's up?” he asked, his voice grating on your ears. 

“Ow, ow...” you muttered, “Hey Petey, can I call in a favor?” 

“Jesus, you sound like a hangover from hell.” 

“Yeah, that's basically what it is,” you admitted and he laughed loudly. Ow. 

“Yeah I can take your shift, but you owe me.” 

“Fair deal,” you said, “Thanks dude.” 

“No problem,” he said, hanging up the phone. 

You clicked your phone off and your arm draped itself across your face. 

“Ugh,” you groaned, “This sucks.” 

A rattle from the kitchen shot pain down your temple. You should probably go ask about taking a shower. You probably smelled pretty awful. You stood up, your head immediately spinning. 

“Uuuugh,” you groaned again, trying to to stay balanced. 

“_____!” Papyrus said from the kitchen doorway. It felt like he was screaming.

“Ow, ow, ow,” you flinch, your fingers going up to rub your temple. 

“What's wrong?” he asked, his face very concerned. 

“I've got a headache,” you explained quietly, “Loud noises hurt my head.” 

His hand shot up to cover his mouth. He nodded silently. You gave him a patient smile. 

“Can I use you guys' shower?” you asked. 

Papyrus nodded gravely and led you through the kitchen and down the hallway, opening the bathroom door. 

“Towels are under the sink,” he offered, whispering so quietly you could barely hear him. 

“Thank you,” you say. 

The hot water felt amazing. You were in and out faster than you'd like, but you didn't want to take all their hot water. As you exited the tub you saw a pile of clothes sitting on top of the sink. Papyrus must have put those down for you. Feeling grateful, you slipped into them. The basketball shorts came down to your thighs, like goofy looking cargo shorts. The “National '87” T-shirt you were given was way too big on you, and because it was sleeveless it showed just a bit of under-boob, but not seeing many other options, you clamped your arms down to your sides and hoped for the best. You exited the bathroom, and made your way into the kitchen. Papyrus was standing over a griddle where a couple pancakes were cooking. The smell made your stomach twist. You were so hungry! 

Sans was sitting at the table, a cup of coffee in his right hand and a pencil in his left. He seemed to be pouring over the Crossword. When you entered he looked up.

“oh hey. there's an advil on the counter if you want it,” he said. You grabbed the advil desperately and chugged it down with the glass of water beside it. 

“______ would you like a pa-” when he turned to you he froze. Your arm was up, currently holding up a glass of water to your mouth. You quickly shoved your arm back down, setting the cup on the counter. 

“Y-yes, I would love a pancake thank you,” you blustered, your face feeling hot. Papyrus was blushing yet again. He turned to face the griddle. You glanced up at Sans and saw him pouring over the crossword. You didn't fail to notice the blue blush on his cheeks. 

 

* * *

Sans left soon after breakfast. After a nice chat with Papyrus, you started getting your things together to head home. 

“Are you going in to work?” Papyrus asked, eyeing you as you gathered your things. 

“Oh, no I took off today cause I wasn't feeling too hot.” 

“Oh,” he said simply, staring down at his hands. 

“Why? What's up?” you asked, obviously not going to leave yet now that he'd hinted at something being wrong. 

“Well...I was just wondering if we could...go see that movie we talked about last night?” 

You fought to remember. You hadn't been completely drunk at that point, you recalled, but it was still hard to pick out details. 

“Oh the movie theater! That's right!” You grinned, “You wanna go do that today?”

“Well I thought it might be fun,” he said shyly. 

“Yeah absolutely! I just didn't want to overstay my welcome.” 

“You could never overstay your welcome around me!” Papyrus declared, “Just let me freshen up and then we can leave!” 

“Yeah okay,” you said, pulling out your phone to check show-times. There was an action playing, rated R, probably pretty gory. As much as Papyrus liked battles and fighting, you couldn't imagine him actually enjoying something like that. There were a couple kids movies out that you debated on, but whether Papyrus would have liked them or not, you weren't in the mood for a kid's movie. The only other option was a cheesy rom-com that you knew you'd hate. Cursing to yourself, you decided to ask Papyrus what he wanted. You walked to the hallway and knocked on the bathroom door. 

“Hey Paps, there's a cartoon and a rom-com playing. Which would you rather see?” 

“Cartoons are for baby bones. I don't know what a rom-com is but it sounds neato!” 

You sighed. Okay. The rom-com it would have to be. A few more minutes and you were both ready. Your hangover was definitely not gone yet, but the headache had numbed to a dull ache at least. Papyrus took you in his convertible, driving through town to Main Street. He pulled into the parking lot of the movie theater when you pointed it out to him. He acted so excited, his eyes big and sparkly, his fingers moving in what could almost be assumed to be a nervous tick. 

“What is a rom-com?” he asked as the two of you stood in line. 

“It's short for Romantic Comedy. It's basically a movie about two people falling in love and they go through a bunch of silly hijinks.” You sucked at explaining things, but you were already doing your best to pretend like you could stand the genre at all. 

“That sounds...interesting,” he said. The other people in line were glancing at him out of the corners of their eye. Several people in line straight up left when the two of you joined. You didn't stare at anyone, keeping your thoughts to yourself. Being polite out in public would give the monsters better cred and right now that was what they needed. 

You bought the tickets, the tween behind the counter sputtering and sweating, staring at the monster unashamedly. It bugged you a bit, but Papyrus was so excited to finally be going to a movie theater that you put your peeves away for now. You handed him his ticket. He clutched it to his chest as if it were some long lost treasure and you couldn't help but giggle. The both of you entered and his eyes grew big, staring up at the vaulted ceiling and the posters on the walls. 

“It's like a castle!” he exclaimed. 

“Kinda...I guess,” you replied. He walked from one side of the room to the other, inspecting all the displays with amazement. 

“Why does this cutout have it's face removed?” he asked you. He was pointing at a cardboard advertisement.

“Oh, you're supposed to poke your face through and then somebody takes a picture,” you explained. He shoved his ticket into your hands and ran behind the cutout. Poking his face through, he glanced down. 

“I'm a mermaid!” he laughed. You laughed right along with him, and you brought out your phone.

“Hey, say cheese!” you called out. 

“Cheese!” he said in a very factual tone, not quite sure why you were asking. You snapped the picture, then put your phone away, a big grin on your face. 

“You want popcorn or a soda?” you asked him as he raced to another exhibit. 

“BOTH!” he yelled happily. You giggled, he was so excited! He was like a puppy, running her and there. You wondered that he hadn't tired himself out yet. You went to the counter, ordered a large popcorn and two drinks and then called to Papyrus. 

“Come on, we oughta get our seats while we can!” He came running. He grabbed the drinks and popcorn from you politely and you thanked him. Then you led the way into the theater. The middle was already all filled up, but you liked watching from the back anyways. You moved up the stairs, making sure that Papyrus was right behind you. A scared whisper echoed through the theater as Papyrus made his way up the stairs. You bit your tongue, hoping to God that Papyrus wouldn't notice. 

You both settled into your seats, divvying out the soda and setting the popcorn in Papyrus' lap. After settling in, you glanced down at the seats below you. A family of four was currently walking out of the theater, shooting Papyrus the dirtiest look they could muster. You squirmed. 

“Maybe this wasn't such a good idea,” Papyrus said, sounding a little bit heartbroken. You felt a surge of anger course through you. How dare they make Papyrus feel bad! 

“You know what? Fuck them.”

Papyrus gaped at your language. 

“You are the sweetest, most kind-hearted person I have ever met. You deserve to have some fun at the theater without being oogled at or shot dirty looks or talked about behind your back.” You were starting to rant. Papyrus put a hand on your shoulder, his eyes begging you to quiet down. You realized just how loud you had been. Most of the people in the theater were looking behind their chairs to watch you. You sighed, settling down deeper into your chair. 

“I'm sorry,” you continued in a whisper, “It just makes me mad when people assume things about other people just because they look different.” 

“Well it would make sense that they would be nervous...” he whispered back, “I know that I'm very tall and some people have called me...intimidating.” 

“But that doesn't excuse that bitchy family that just left. They probably think of monsters as if y'all are below them or some shit.” 

“It's not just monsters though,” he added, “Wasn't this a problem before we came to the surface?” 

You nodded. 

“Then I don't take it personally. If people will be angry anyways, it might as well be at me because I will not let my feelings get hurt over it.” 

“That doesn't make it right,” you hissed. 

He nodded, “Yeah, but we're here anyways. And we're gonna have fun anyways.” 

You paused a few seconds, letting Papyrus' words calm you down. 

“You're right,” you admitted. 

“Of course I am!” he grinned, “I am the Great Papyrus! I am always right.” 

You giggled. The trailers started, and you settled in, grabbing some popcorn. 

By the end of the movie, both you and Papyrus were crying. You hadn't expected the movie to be so touching. The jokes had been cliché and predictable, but by the end of it you actually found yourself rooting for the couple. Papyrus was desperately trying to be quiet as he sniffled next to you. The sweetheart had been dropping questions and remarks throughout the whole movie, obviously enraptured with it. You realized that this was probably the first rom-com he'd ever seen. You tried to remember the first rom-com you had ever seen. Had you enjoyed it? Had you been happy with the genre before it had become so overused and bland that you couldn't stand the sight of it? 

This movie wasn't a pure rom-com though. The writing in it was pretty good, and when the main character died for her lover, it took the entire theater by storm. You could hear sniffling all over the seats. The credits rolled to a melancholy tune and you stood, hoping to beat the other people to the car. Papyrus didn't move. You stared in confusion for a second, then sat back down beside him. As the people trickled out of the theater, Papyrus turned to you. 

“Humans can be so cruel sometimes, but they can make so many beautiful things,” he sighed. 

You nodded, wondering where he was going with this. 

You weren't sure that he knew where he was going with this. He tapped his phalanges on the movie theater seat and gave a big sigh. 

“The story was very nice. It made me happy,” he said. 

“It made me happy too,” you smiled. There was something very genuine about him at that moment. You wondered what he was thinking about. 

“Do you have anyone like that?” he asked. 

“Like what?” you asked. 

“Somebody that you would die for, because you loved them so much?” 

“Uh...oh...um...no not really.” 

“Oh,” he answered simply, “Okay.” 

“Come on,” you said, nudging his shoulder, “Let's get out of here before we scare the clean-up crew.” 

* * *

You were still at the Skeletons' house by the time Sans got back. You and Papyrus had gone shopping after the movie, walking around the mall leisurely, talking together. It had been so relaxing. You couldn't remember a time when you'd felt more relaxed. You were lounged at their kitchen table when Sans walked in. 

“you're still here?” he asked, surprised and perhaps a tad annoyed? 

“Y-yeah. Um...” you started, feeling embarrassed. Okay you had definitely overstayed your welcome. 

“Don't be rude Sans!” Papyrus scolded, “_____ and I went to see a movie and then we went to the mall! We had a very nice time and I invited her back to have supper with us. She was very nervous about “encroaching on us” but I let her know that she was not encroaching on us at all and that we would be very happy to have her over.” He narrowed his eyes at Sans. Sans lifted his hands in defeat. 

“no need to get your undies in a wad, I was just curious,” he said. You snorted, just knowing that he used “undies” on purpose. 

“good to see you again,” Sans said, nodding at you. You nodded back, feeling that quiet reach of wordless conversation once more. 

As long as Papyrus is good with you...

Supper was nice. Everything was nice. God, you loved spending time with these guys. Sans was just as funny with just the three of you as he was in a group of people. By the end of supper you were feeling giddy and so, so happy. 

“Alright guys,” you said finally, “I should be heading home. Thanks so much for letting me stick around.” 

“And I will of course be driving you!” Papyrus said. 

“Oh, I can walk home,” you smiled, “It's not that far away-”

“No.”

It was spoken so seriously that it almost gave you a chill. You turned to see him looking at you, a small glint of orange in his right eye. You'd never seen that before. 

“bro?” Sans asked, standing up from the table.  
The light sputtered in Papyrus' eye, going out like an extinguished flame, and he blushed. 

“I...I am sorry. I just don't like the idea of you walking home alone. Especially after that story you told last night...” he muttered. 

Sans seemed to suddenly understand, but you didn't remember what he was talking about. You glanced at Sans, then back at Papyrus. 

“Story?” 

“Of the guy you had to...p-punch,” he said, looking nervous. 

Oh. Yeah that was right you told that story didn't you...

“Okay, if it'll make you feel better,” you said. You felt bad for staying so late. Next time you wouldn't stay so late, so he wouldn't have to worry about you. He gave you a smile, looking instantly relieved. 

“Then let us be off!” he said happily. 

“Kay,” you yawned, feeling the energy from the exciting day webbing, “Bye Sans.”

“see ya,” he yawned back, heading down the hallway and into his bedroom. Papyrus hauled your bags into the back seat, then opened the door for you. 

“Such a gentleman,” you said, pretending to swoon. 

He gave a triumphant “Nyeh heh heh!” before heading around and sidling into the driver's seat. He drove you back home, turning up the radio way too loud, but you loved it. You sang along to the pop songs. Papyrus tried to sing along, but didn't really know the words so he mostly just hummed along with you. You caught him glancing at you a couple times. Uh-oh, did your hair look that bad? You tried to smooth it out, but it was useless in the wind. Papyrus always drove top down, no matter where he went or what time it was. You wondered if he would put the top up if it were to rain. 

He pulled into the apartment driveway and you hopped out of the car. 

“Thanks for driving me Paps! I had so much fun today!” 

“I did too! I will see you later!” 

He sped away, his tires peeling out like they did every time. You giggled, climbing the stairs to your apartment. Once inside, you set your bags down on the couch and stretched. You'd had quite the two days. They had almost felt like a weekend in and of themselves. You smiled, humming the tune of the last song that had played on the radio. You went into your kitchen, grabbing a drink of water before heading to your bedroom. You wondered when you would see them again. Maybe you could have the two brothers over sometime? You flicked the light on to your room and closed the door behind you, ready to snuggle into your bed and watch some TV. Just as you were setting your water down on the side table drawer, you heard something behind you.

“You're nothing but a monster-slut.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I might have underestimated my self. I've been sick all day so I got a ton of writing done. I'll post as many chapters as I can tonight while I still have the inspiration.


	5. Chapter 5: Fear and Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Attempted Rape in this chapter! Very graphic and possibly triggering!

You turned slowly. Someone had been hiding behind your door as you walked in. Someone who was wearing a ski mask and who was currently fondling themselves as they approached you. Your heart stopped and for a second you couldn't move, but in an instant your fight or flight kicked in. You took off, headed to the only other door available to you, your bathroom door. The man got to you faster. He grabbed at your hair, pulling you down to the floor. You screamed and writhed, but couldn't get out of his grip. He pulled apart your shirt and tore your bra off of your shoulders. His mouth moved onto your stomach, licking you. He started unbuttoning your pants and you let out a kick that caught him square in the stomach. You unwrapped yourself from him, then bolted for the bathroom once more. There were no windows in there, but it had a lock. You could be safe for at least a minute or two. You ran past the door and slammed it shut behind you, locking it and thanking God it also had a deadbolt lock. You made sure it was secure just as the man ran into the door angrily. He was beating his fists on it, pulling at the door knob angrily. He was yelling things at you, horrible things. 

With shaking fingers you called the first number that popped into your head, Papyrus. 

He answered immediately. 

“Hello! This is the Great Papyrus!” 

“Paps I need help!” you practically screamed into the receiver. 

“_____?” he asked, confused. 

“There's a man in the house and I've locked myself in the bathroom but he's outside my door trying to get in!” you rushed to explain. Papyrus grew very quiet, until suddenly, the phone went out. Within literal seconds the man behind your door let out a stream of curses and loud crashes resounded throughout your bedroom. You fell onto the floor, shaking. What was he doing? Finding something to bash the door down with? How long had he been in your room? You grit your teeth, sending up a quick prayer. Suddenly, all was quiet behind the door. 

“_____? you there?” asked a voice behind the door. It was most assuredly Sans, but you couldn't bring yourself to get up off the floor. A couple seconds passed before the door was blown open by an orange flash of light. There stood Papyrus, his brother quick on his heels. Papyrus knelt down, placing a hand on your head. 

“We are here. You are safe,” he soothed. You started sobbing, so thankful that they were there. You reached up and wrapped your arms around his shoulders, clinging to him. 

“He almost had me Papyrus...I didn't think I'd be able to get away,” you sobbed, “Thank you for coming. Thank you, thank you.” 

“we need to call the human police,” Sans said to Papyrus after a second or two. Papyrus nodded and Sans left, pulling his phone out. Papyrus didn't say anything, he just held you and let you cry. When Sans came back, he took his jacket off and laid it over you, covering what you had been too distraught to be embarrassed about. Papyrus hugged you closer, pulling you into his lap and petting your hair. 

“It's okay,” he whispered quietly, “It's okay.” 

You were still shivering when the police came. They carried your attacker away on a stretcher. You didn't get a good look at him, but what you did see didn't look pretty. You were allowed to change into another shirt before the police called you out to the parking lot to ask you some questions. Your landlord was out in the parking lot, as well as some of your neighbors. Papyrus stayed beside you the entire time, letting you hold onto his arm as you recounted what had happened. The cops didn't push you. Somebody wrapped you in a shock blanket and you had to admit that it helped calm your shivering. After the police and ambulances left, Sans walked over to you.

“you okay there bud?” he asked, his eyes full of worry. 

“I'm fine,” you said with a small smile, “I'm over the shock now. Sorry you guys had to see that...” you bit your lip. 

Sans shook his head, “don't be stupid, kid. i'm just glad you happened to call papyrus.” 

That made you wonder. 

“How were you able to get to my house so quickly?” you asked, glancing up at Papyrus. Papyrus still had a protective arm around your shoulders, his gaze intensely focused on you. 

“We, uh...Sans, I mean, can teleport,” he answered. 

“Wow,” you sighed, “That is lucky then.” Sans nodded. 

“so...we're probably gonna ask you if you'll spend the night with us again.” 

You thought about it, then nodded, “I think that's a good idea.” You had no idea how many people had seen you and Papyrus together today. There was no wisdom in taking chances like that. 

“And worry not!” said Papyrus with a grin, “You will not have to sleep on the couch again, for I, the Great Papyrus, will take the couch in order to give you a good night's rest!” 

“Th-thanks Paps, but uh...I'm not sure I really wanna sleep tonight...if that's okay.” Papyrus' smile fell and he nodded quietly. 

“Of course,” he said softly, “Do what you need to.”

To be honest you could have slept, but more than anything you just didn't want to be alone. And you couldn't very well ask either of them to sleep with you now could you? You took a breath, ready for an anxious all-nighter. Your landlord walked up to your group. He looked at you for a moment, then turned to look at Papyrus and Sans. 

“Thank you for protecting her,” he said quietly, “_____ is a sweet girl and I would have been distraught if anything had happened to her.” He held out his hand, first to Sans, then to Papyrus, who both shook it. Your landlord kneeled down so he was at eye level to you. 

“I'm sorry that this has happened. I'll be upping the security around here. I promise that this will never happen again.” 

You nodded at him, “Thanks Rick.” He smiled at you. Rick was your favorite out of all the landlords you'd ever had, but he'd never stuck his neck out for you this far before. 

Papyrus finally let you go, gingerly removing his arm. He was being so gentle with you, it was as if he was afraid of hurting you. You gave him a reassuring smile and he smiled back. The two of them started walking and you followed after, hardly even noticing that the world was changing around you without you even noticing it. Only when you stood before the skeleton's house did you notice anything had happened. 

“Woah...” you muttered. Sans looked a bit smug with himself. You entered the house with the Skeletons and settled down on the couch. Papyrus brought down a large amount of pillows and blankets for you to “cuddle up in!” and within five minutes you were nestled up against the two Skeletons, watching TV. After a while you really started to calm down. You felt your breathing relax and you gave a small smile. 

You woke up, covered in pillows and blankets everywhere except your face. Your eyes fluttered open, seeing only black for a moment before your sight dilated correctly. The blackness was a T-shirt. Papyrus' T-shirt to be exact. You had your head in a pillow in his lap, and his skeletal fingers were entwined in your hair. His head was thrown back in sleep, his mouth open slightly and a small snore vibrated down through his stomach. You were about to jump out of his arms in embarrassment, but when you noticed that he was asleep, you relaxed. Feeling a bit nervous, you snuggled back into the pillow, closing your eyes. You couldn't help but breathe in. Papyrus smelled like cologne and oregano, it was a deep smell that drew you in. 

Snap out of it, you told yourself. This was inappropriate. But then why would he have allowed you to fall asleep in his lap? 

Maybe he felt bad for you because of what happened last night. Maybe he figured he'd put up with it for the night, out of pity. Your stomach twisted and you blushed bright pink. 

“enjoying yourself?” asked a whispered voice behind you. You jolted straight up off of Papyrus' lap, knocking yourself off balance and sending you plummeting to the floor. Sans caught you with a quiet laugh and set you back on the couch. You spun towards him, just knowing that your blush had crept it's way across your face and down your neck. 

“I...I...I wasn't...” 

“don't worry,” he said with a chuckle, “i know you're not gonna grope my brother in his sleep.” 

You swallowed hard, glancing at Papyrus. He was still sound asleep, his fingers curling as if still in your hair. 

“I'm sorry if I made him feel uncomfortable,” you said miserably. 

Sans made a “pfft” sound and looked at you incredulously, then dropped into a lesser smile when he saw your expression, “what, you're serious? boy do you guys have a lot to talk about...”

“What do you mean?” you asked. 

“i'm thinkin' you should probably ask him,” Sans suggested. He walked away, “it's early morning. you want some coffee?” 

“Yes please,” you said politely. 

He entered the kitchen, scoffing to himself. You could barely make out the words, “fingers in your hair and everything.” 

If your blush wasn't already at it's worst it would have deepened. You wanted to crawl deeper into the blankets until you could no longer be found. After a few minutes, someone cleared their throat in front of you. You peeked out of your blanket nest and grabbed the proffered coffee. Sans took a sip of his own cup, flopping down on the couch next to you. 

“you know, papyrus has a really kind soul,” Sans said, as if playing around with an idea in his head. 

“I know,” you agreed, “He's a sweetheart.” 

“so if you end up damaging that kind, sweethearted soul I will tear yours into pieces,” he said suddenly. His eye started to glow blue and you felt yourself shrink into the blankets. In mere seconds, however, his eye's color dissipated and he was back to his normal self. 

“Damaging his soul? I would never...I don't really understand what you mean,” you hesitated, nervous about bringing that blue eye back. He took a long sip of his coffee, draining most of the cup. 

“oh I aint talkin' about fighting, kiddo,” he said casually. 

“I really don't think I understan-”

“You will,” he said shortly. He drained the last of his coffee, standing up from the couch. 

“but other than that warning there, you have my blessing, so to say,” he said, stretching out his back tiredly. 

“anyways, I've got a job to do soon so I'll see ya around kiddo,” he said, putting his cup on top of the TV and opening the front door. 

“B-blessing?” you stammered, hoping against hope he didn't mean what you thought he meant. 

“bye,” he said with a laugh. Sans slammed the door after him which woke Papyrus up. He blinked, closing his mouth and stretching his arms. Looking around, he saw you cuddled up in the blankets. A big smile took over his face and you smiled back, feeling massive butterflies. 

Shit, shit, shit. This was not good.


	6. Chapter 6: Projected Anger

Papyrus made you breakfast while you casually read through the emails on your phone. Casually meaning not casually at all. You kept glancing up at him, wondering if he was watching you. Did he feel awkward about having you sleep in his lap? You remembered how comforting he had been last night after the incident, how he had wrapped you up in his arms, soothing you. It made your heart flutter. 

When had this come about? Last you knew you were enjoying y'all's friendship as just that: a friendship. You hadn't even felt butterflies until this morning. Was it the stress from last night? Making you think dumb things and have dumb emotions and...and...god damn he looked good in his pajama pants. 

You shook your head violently, banning those thoughts from your head. No. No way. No way in hell would he be interested in you, and even if he was you were not interesting enough to keep him interested. You knew that you were boring...you lived in a fantasy world of video games and anime to make up for that fact. There was no way anybody like him would actually want to be around you for that long after seeing how shallow and...plain you were. 

You felt pinpricks of tears stinging your eyes. You turned away quickly, but Papyrus had already seen. 

“Are you okay? I am sorry! Did I do something to make you upset?” 

“NO! No,” you said, a wet laugh in your throat, “I'm just...thinking is all.” 

“About what?” he pressed. 

“N-nothing,” you answered. You sucked at lying and Papyrus was good at picking up on people's lies, you could tell that about him. He put both his hands on his hips, unamused. 

“I guess I was just...thinking about the trouble I've put you guys through,” you said, not honest, but not completely lying either. 

He wrapped you up in a hug and you felt dirty for lying to him. 

“Never think that I don't want to be with you. At any time. Anywhere. I will always enjoy your company, _____.” 

Your head spun. You felt a shiver go down your spine. Was he doing that on purpose?   
“I promise you,” he said, pulling out of the hug to look you square in the eyes. And you knew that you believed him. 

His face was so close to yours. You wanted to kiss him. Fuuuuck you wanted to kiss him so bad. He seemed to hesitate, his breath suddenly hot against yours before he pulled back. Why were you feeling so melty and gooey? You could feel your hard shell start to disintegrate without your permission as your hormonal mind rushed to fill your brain with daydreams. 

“Thank you Papyrus,” you said, your stomach flipping. He nodded with a big grin and plopped a plate of fried eggs and bacon in front of you. 

“Now eat up!” he declared, “We have a big day ahead of us!” 

You took a big forkful of egg, stuffing it into your mouth. 

“A big day? What are we doing? I've gotta get to work...”

“yeah no,” said a voice close by. Sans was walking into the kitchen. How long had he been standing out there? You cursed at him in your head, grabbing another forkful of eggs. 

“i went to your work and they gave you a week off, full pay. your coworkers send you their best wishes by the way,” Sans said, grabbing the plate that Papyrus handed off to him. 

A week off? Full pay? 

“Today is a big day because we are moving you into our guest room!” Papyrus cried triumphantly. He brandished his bacon tongs like a sword up in the air, but was soon popped by the bacon grease and turned back to his cooking. 

“if that's okay with you, of course,” Sans added, raising a brow bone. 

“Guys...you've only just met me,” you argued. 

“Untrue,” Papyrus defended, “I met you six days ago. Almost a full week!” 

You let out an anxious laugh, “That's hardly enough time to get to know somebody. I could be a mass murderer for all you know.” 

Sans let out a chuckle, “you don't scare me in the slightest, kid.” 

“Nonsense,” said Papyrus, “I have only known you a little while, but I feel like I have gotten to know you enough to figure out whether you are a bad person.” 

You grinned. 

“not to cut the fun short, but you have been neglecting the lawn-keeping at the monster diplomacy center, paps. you'll probably wanna get that fixed today before Undyne gets onto your butt.” 

Papyrus sighed regretfully, shoving the rest of the eggs and steaming hot bacon onto his plate. 

“You are right, brother. Alas, dear _____, I have to go. We will have to move you into the guest room later tonight.”

“You know...” you say, “Just to put it out there, I used to garden and do lawn work with my Dad. I might be able to help.” 

You paused, watching Papyrus' expression start to beam, “If you wanted my help, I mean,” you added. 

“Of course! This will be so fun!” Papyrus exclaimed, beginning to rant about all the “fun things” he got to do at his job. You buckled down for a long day of doing chores. But if Papyrus was happy, how could you not be too? 

* * *

It ended up being more fun than you thought, and taking much longer than you thought. The sun was quickly slipping closer to twilight by the time you and Papyrus finished. You threw the last bag of leaves and grass and twigs onto the pile of garbage bags in the dumpster with a grunt. Papyrus and you had raked up all the leaves and twigs from the yard, but he had made it a contest to see who could rake up the most the fastest. He ended up winning of course, with his somehow never-ending source of energy. Afterwards you trimmed the hedges into manageable shapes. He taught you how to make a square hedge and a circle hedge and he even let you watch as he made a helix-shaped hedge. It was very interesting and his undiluted passion just made it better. 

You walked back to where Papyrus had collapsed, his arms and hands covered in dirt and mud. There was a brand new row of flowers in the landscaping by the building now, and you had to pride yourself on how good they looked. You'd used what you remembered from working with your Dad. In fact, the entire day had been a throwback to those hot summer days when your Dad would work you to the bone in the yard and then take you swimming. 

Hmmm...swimming. Papyrus was resting right next to the large water fountain that trickled playfully, allowing birds to drink and passerby to throw in coins. You walked closer, feeling playful after such a hard day.

“You look a bit tired Paps,” you said, a thick layer of evil dripping off your voice. 

“I...am?” he said, giving you a curious look. 

“I bet you could go for a drink...” you suggested before suddenly shoving him over. He fell straight into the fountain, but not before grabbing at your arms in a desperate attempt to save himself. You screamed as you were pulled in with him. Both of you landed smack dab in the water, gasping in shock before you dissolved into laughter. The water actually felt really good on your hot skin and when you sat up the wind that had been hot before cooled you down. 

“That was very mean!” said Papyrus with a pout as he sat up in the water. You glanced at him, wondering if you'd really hurt his feelings. 

“But not as mean as this!” he shouted as he shoved you under the water again. You came back up, laughing and wiping the water out of your eyes. 

“Come here, you big meanie, I'll make you pay for that!” you threatened. Upon seeing him, you sent out a splash that engulfed over his head. He sputtered, shaking his head to get the water out of his eye sockets. You almost died of laughter, standing up to jeer at him. He turned, quick as lightning, and yanked on your feet, pulling you down into the water once more. You came up again, sputtering much like he had. 

“No! You've bested me! I am nothing compared to the Great Papyrus!” you offered as a peace offering. He laughed, accepting your gift of praise and the two of you picked yourselves out of the fountain. 

“I hope you're having fun,” said a voice in front of you. You glanced up and saw Undyne, who looked slightly pissed. You shrank into yourself, feeling absolutely ridiculous.

“I...I'm sorry, that was my fault,” you said quietly, “I pushed Papyrus in.” 

“Yes I saw,” she said, still sounding angry. 

Something was bothering her, you could tell. And you didn't think it really had anything to do with you and Papyrus playing in the fountain. 

“U-Undyne?” Papyrus asked, looking worried. 

“I don't want that human coming here if she's just gonna distract you,” Undyne muttered. 

“She...was not distracting me! She worked very hard with me all day!” Papyrus defended. You felt yourself shrinking further and further into yourself. NO way were they gonna fight over you. 

“Oh I'm sure,” Undyne snarled, her anger coming out a bit more now, “I'm sure she's doing what she can to get into your pants.”

A beat of tense silence.

“What did you just say?” Papyrus said. His voice was very calm and very low. 

“I'm saying that that human isn't any good for you, Papyrus. You need to dump her like the lost puppy she is.” 

You didn't know Undyne very well, but you knew projected anger when you heard it. Within seconds you knew not to take what she said seriously. Your Mom had been a master at projected anger, inflicting on you words that she wished she could use on your Dad. 

“You don't know anything about her,” Papyrus said. You'd never heard Papyrus like this. Was there almost a growl to his voice? There was something so calm about it...and yet something so dangerous that it made you shiver. 

“I know that she's a useless, whiny brat who's taking advantage of you and your brother!” she shouted, her face growing darker in anger. 

It's not personal. It's not personal. It hit way too close to home but it was not personal. 

“Don't say that about her,” Papyrus said, his voice still low and soft. 

“Why? You trying to get into her pants too?” Undyne jeered.   
Suddenly, there was a shift in atmosphere. Something shining and bright came out of Undyne's chest, floating in front of her. 

“You really wanna do this, punk?” Undyne growled, her eyes narrowing at him. Papyrus didn't say anything. He held his hand out to his side and his eye flared orange. A long bone materialized out of thin air, dropping heavy into his hand. Undyne did something similar, a long, blue spear resting in her hand, balanced by the mere tips of her fingers. 

“P-Papyrus...” you breathed, unsure of what was happening, but not liking where it was going. 

Papyrus rushed at Undyne, his club-like thing colliding with her spear and shattering sparks of magic everywhere. You took a step back, completely confused. Why were they fighting? Over you of all people! You understood that Undyne probably had some shit going on...but Papyrus? What had caused him to snap like that? Couldn't he tell that she just needed to cool down? Undyne had swiped his weapon away from her, bringing her spear across her chest to swipe at him. It hit him right in the chest. He flew back, skidding to a stop right in front of you. 

“Stop!” you screamed, “Please just stop!” 

Papyrus rose, gripping his conjured bone tightly. As Undyne raced towards him he side stepped, bringing the club down on top of her. It hit. She collapsed, the club knocking the air clean out of her, her body crumbling down into the dirt. Papyrus' eye flashed brighter and he raised his club once more, getting ready to hit at her while she was down. 

“Papyrus no!” you screamed, rushing forward, “Don't hurt her! None of this is needed!” You grabbed at his arm squeezing it close, hoping against hope that he didn't shove you away. You felt his body hesitate. He glanced down at you, his eye extinguishing. The bone disappeared out of his hand and he collapsed into you, sweat beading his skull. 

You tried to hold onto him, but he was too damn heavy. You gently slid him to the ground, then ran to Undyne. She was unconscious, but still breathing thank God. 

You pulled out your phone, anxious to get everything fixed. It rang. And rang. And rang. 

Come on Sans, pick up. 

He finally did, a lazy “yah?” being his only introduction. 

“Sans, something happened. I think both Undyne and Papyrus are hurt. We're at the center please come quickl-” by the time the words were out of your mouth Sans was at your side. His eyes went wide when he saw his brother and his brother's best friend both passed out on the grass. 

His eye glowed and you took a nervous step back, but he wasn't angry. He enveloped them in blue magic, lifting their bodies and beginning to walk into the Center. 

“please tell me what happened,” he said, his voice eerily calm. 

You hesitated. How would Sans react knowing that you were the reason they were fighting? Would he blame you? Would he hate you? You shoved your inhibitions aside and told him everything.   
You finished the story right as he entered the building, setting them both down in the chairs of the waiting room. The offices were closed, but the doors had remained open while Undyne was talking with someone. You thanked the heavens for that. 

“so papyrus seemed...to snap?” Sans asked, looking down at his little brother. 

“I'd say that, yeah,” you said, feeling very uncomfortable, “I've never seen him act anything close to how he was acting there.” 

“and he actually fought her? physically?” 

You nodded. 

He sighed, rubbing a hand across his scalp. 

“this is something I've never seen before. there can really only be one explanation, but I still don't understand it in it's entirety,” he said. 

“And that is?” you pressed. 

“well, only one thing's changed since he started exhibiting this behavior. you.”

You gasped, “He's done this before?” 

Sans nodded, “that guy who attacked you? you saw him, right? that wasn't me. I've never seen papyrus act so wild while attacking anyone before. it was almost...feral.” His voice was thick with worry. 

“So what do we do?” you asked, feeling nervous, “Would it be better if...” your eyes started filling with tears suddenly. Fuck, no that's not what you meant to do. Fuck, fuck, you looked so dumb now. 

Sans glanced up at you, “no. it would not be better if you left, if that's what you're trying to say. honestly ____ I don't understand you sometimes.” 

You rubbed at your eyes, being certain they were empty of tears before looking back up at him. 

“Wha-” you started, but Sans made an annoyed hissing sound and waved you off. 

“it's not my place to say I guess.” 

He levitated Papyrus once more, motioning for you to walk with him. 

“What about Undyne?” you asked. 

“leave her. she had a fight with alphys and she was a bitch for taking that out on you.” He locked the Center doors behind you, then started walking. You purposefully watched this time, trying to see the differences in environment. You still didn't notice anything until you were standing in front of the house. You rushed ahead to open the door for Sans and Sans walked in, laying Papyrus down on the couch. He took a tired breath before glancing at you.

“welp. I'm exhausted. I'm gonna head to bed.” He left the room without another word. 

You stared down at Papyrus. His expression was pained, nervous, as if he were having a bad dream. Hands shaking slightly, you reached down, wiping the sweat off his brow. Your hand rested on his cheek as you stared down at him, thinking deeply. 

Why would Papyrus suddenly begin to break down as soon as he met you? Was there something wrong with you? Were you hurting him, somehow? 

Your eyes glanced up to his face to realize that his eyes were open now. He was staring at you. You pulled your hand back in horror, but he caught it in his own, slowly pulling it back to his face. 

You nodded, lightly brushing his cheek with your fingertips. You used to do this to your younger sister. It always put her to sleep. 

“What happened Papyrus? Why did you attack Undyne?” 

He leaned into your touch, relaxing. His eyes closed in thought and it took a while for him to reply. His voice caught as he explained, “I..I just can't think clearly whenever I'm around you. And whenever I feel...” he blushed a hard orange, “Whenever I feel protective about you, I just kinda...just kinda...lose myself?” He opened his eyes, his brow furrowing. 

“I don't know why...I just want to keep you safe, and when Undyne was saying those things about you it just, it made me so,” he closed his eyes again, and a tear was squeezed out, “Angry. I'd never felt so angry, except maybe when that man was attacking you.” 

“Papyrus, please don't feel like you have to protect me,” you implored. 

“But I want to!” he said, his voice growing louder. He sat up suddenly, grabbing your hand with both of his, “I want to protect you and keep you safe! And I...I want to...” his eyes were swimming and your heart felt sick with worry for him. Papyrus grew silent, bringing your hand up to his teeth. He placed a clunky, awkward kiss against your palm and you felt your heart go still. 

“P-Papyrus?” you breathed. 

“More than anything I want to kiss you,” he said, his voice tinged with despair. 

You didn't need to be told twice. You leaned in, pressing your lips against his mouth. His eyes grew wide, but you just closed your eyes, letting your mouth do the talking. After a shocked couple of seconds, he opened his, sliding a tentative tongue out to trace the inside of your mouth. Your body jolted with energy as he kissed you. It was so deep, and filling and loving. His head tilted and he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you closer to him. Your heart must have been beating at a million beats per minute as you sat down sideways on his lap, deepening the kiss with a quiet passion. His right hand slid into your hair, entwining your strands with his fingers. He kissed you so, so softly. When he pulled you even tighter, you moaned softly into his mouth and suddenly he stopped kissing you, pulling away with a hitch of his breath. You opened your eyes and saw his eye shining with magic. You felt a sudden twinge of fear, but it melted away when he reached up to touch your face, so gently. He breathed your name suddenly, and you melted into him, wrapping him up in an embrace that you hadn't dared hope to deserve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so in love with all of you guys. The amount of support I've gotten for this is so much more than I was expecting and it inspires me to write more and more!!! Thank you so much! 
> 
> Also, I made a sideblog on Tumblr for this story, because I guess that's a thing that happens on this website? Shoot me an ask if you wanna talk or have any questions about Gentle Love. I'll probably keep any story updates on that side blog from now on. 
> 
> gentlelovefanfic.tumblr.com


	7. Chapter 7: Oh...Toys...

You must have held each other for hours that night, because when you woke up you were both spooning on the couch. His arm was draped around you, lightly resting on your bicep. Your head was tucked underneath his chin and you could feel his breath softly puffing on the back of your head. This time, you didn't want to jolt away. Your heart fluttered with happiness and you tucked yourself deeper into him. You had no intention of letting him get away, now that you had him. The sheer joy that Papyrus liked you back made you want to do somersaults and skip through a field of pink, fluffy flowers. You smiled, resting into his embrace, just happy to be near him. 

You heard someone enter the room and you opened your eyes, moving to get up. 

“oh don't move on my account, i'm heading out anyways,” Sans whispered, “i'm just glad you two were finally honest with each other.” 

You would have replied, said something snarky, but he was out the door before you could think of anything to say. You took a deep breath, inhaling Papyrus' scent and dozing off to sleep once more. 

You woke up again, still wrapped up in his arms on the couch. You checked your phone and saw that it was currently 11. Sheesh, you must have been comfortable. You shifted on the couch, turning to look at the Skeleton. He was still sound asleep. You leaned in, kissing him on the cheek. He made a small waking-up noise and his eyes opened. He grinned, his eyes growing wide in excitement. 

“It wasn't a dream!” he cried triumphantly. You laughed in response, kissing his cheek again. 

“No, it wasn't a dream,” you said. He sat up, pulling you along with him. He kissed you again. 

“Damn, you need to stop doing that,” you said a bit breathlessly afterwords, “I'm gonna want to stay on this couch all day.” 

“No! We mustn't stay _____. We have to move you into your brand new bedroom!” 

“Okay! Let's get started then!” you grinned. You both got up from the couch and walked into the kitchen. There was a box of donuts sitting on the counter. 

“went to see undyne. you love birds have fun.” was written on a note on top of the donuts. Papyrus grabbed the note and quickly threw it away, muttering to himself. You grabbed a couple donuts before heading down the hallway with Papyrus. He opened the door to the room in the very back of the house. It was small, really more of an office than anything else, but you didn't mind. Papyrus started moving furniture around, bringing out the computer desk and shoving it down the hall. 

“Where will that go?” you asked, hoping that they weren't getting rid of it. 

“Back in my room! I moved it here in order to have a real true office, but I am used to having my computer in my bedroom.” 

You breathed a sigh of relief and helped him lug the huge thing into his bedroom. You'd never seen his bedroom before, but the biggest thing that caught your attention was the car bed. 

“God damnit Papyrus” you cried, bending over from laughing. 

“What's wrong?” he asked. 

“You're just too cute!” you said. 

He obviously wasn't satisfied with your answer, but when you leaned over the desk to give him another kiss he didn't seem to care much anymore. The two of you pushed the desk over to a blank wall. It fit perfectly there and it didn't even make his room too crowded. You moved back into your new bedroom, bringing out the different things that had been placed in there. Several trips were made until the room was empty. Somehow you had found places for all the other things in the room without making the rest of the house messy. 

You wanted to ask Papyrus about what his friends would think about this, but you felt a bit afraid to ask, not really sure what “this” was. Were y'all dating? Were y'all just...a thing? You'd had a thing in college like that. It had sucked royally, because you had fallen in love with the guy and he had thrown you out to the wolves when he got tired of you. 

You couldn't think of Papyrus doing that. But still...

“Wowie, I'm tired from all that moving around,” Papyrus said, sitting down on the couch beside you. Just then, Sans walked into the house. 

“wow, have you guys not even moved?” 

“No, we cleared out _____'s bedroom!” Papyrus attacked defensively, “We are not lazy like you Sans!” 

He shrugged, then stepped to the side. Undyne stood in the doorway, looking sheepish. Papyrus immediately stiffened, You glanced at Sans and he gave you a look, but this time you couldn't read it very well. What was he thinking? 

“I...I wanted to apologize,” Undyne murmured.

Papyrus didn't make a noise. 

“Especially to you, _____. The things I said weren't justified at all and honestly I was just picking a fight with you. I wasn't expecting one back, but Papyrus, you really proved me wrong.” She gave Papyrus a small, shy smile, “I am impressed with you. And I'm glad that you fought to keep her honor,” her scales grew darker in what you assumed was a blush, “Even if you had to fight against me.” 

“I forgive you!” Papyrus said loudly. You glanced at him, raising an eyebrow. 

“R-really?” Undyne asked. 

“Yes! If you are truly sorry then I forgive you!” he declared once more. Undyne smiled at him, then turned to you.

“I said some pretty awful stuff about you. I can't expect you to forgive me yet, but I want to let you know that I'm gonna try to make things right.” 

“I forgive you,” you said with a nod. 

“Wha-” she said, her mouth falling open a bit. 

“I could tell you had something on your mind, and while you shouldn't have taken it out on just anyone like that, I can understand what you were feeling,” you explained, “So I forgive you.” 

Undyne burst out into a wide smile. 

“I'll make it up to ya punk!” 

She left soon afterwards, letting Sans walk her home. He was back in a minute flat, so he must have used his teleportation. You were cleaning up the pallet in the living room when he walked back through the door. 

“will you fucking stop cleaning and go make out with papyrus? jeez...” he moaned. 

“I like to take things slow, Sans. So watch it,” you hissed under your breath. 

“well let me know when you plan to start so I don't have to keep leaving the house every five minutes till then.”

He brushed past you, leaving you stumbling over your words in a flustered sort of anger. Papyrus hadn't even brought up the fact that you were together with him yet. Except for the occasional awkward kiss, you wouldn't have even been able to tell a difference between today and yesterday. You finished putting away the blankets, then got to work on the kitchen. The dishes had been Sans' job last night, you recalled, which explained why they hadn't been done yet. You ran water in the sink, filling up one side with soapy, hot water. You started scrubbing the pots and pans, feeling better about yourself now that you were getting something done. For some reason, you'd always had a problem with taking a break from work, even when the break was given to you. You felt a bit useless without your work, as if you weren't contributing anything to society. You hadn't had many chores in your apartment, being only one person, but doing the chores in the Skeleton's house made you feel good, like you were paying them back just a bit for their kindness. 

Papyrus walked into the kitchen, “Sans and I moved your bed into your new room!” he said happily. 

You froze... “The...bed from my apartment?” 

“Yeah!” he said, a grin on his face. 

“Okay,” you said quietly, setting the dishes down in the water and drying your hands quickly, “Let me...uh...go grab some things from my room.” You walked down the hallway and Papyrus followed you. Walking in, you cursed quietly to yourself. Sans had left your room thank god, but there was your box, sitting there, neatly tucked away on top of your bed, along with your scarf boxes and hat box and the other various things you'd put under your bed. 

They hadn't opened it. Thank God in heaven. You moved to put the boxes under your bed. Papyrus moved in after you, pulling the lid off of your hat box. You needed to move fast. You slipped over to your box and bent down, sliding it under your bed. 

“What are all these boxes for?” he asked. 

“Oh they have my accessories and...things...” you muttered. 

“I want to see!” he said happily, opening another box. You allowed him to look through your scarves, tucking away the boxes under your bed when he was finished. He finished looking through the last one and you breathed a sigh of relief until...

“What about that first one you put away?”

“Huh? Oh it's nothing!” you rushed. 

“I want to see!” he said, pulling it out before you could stop him. 

“NO! No...” you yelled, snatching the box away from him. He looked up at you, his eyes filled with hurt. You cursed at yourself for allowing this to happen. 

“It's just...some personal things...” you groaned. 

“Oh! I know what you are talking about!” Papyrus said happily. 

“You do?” you asked. Papyrus grabbed your arm and dragged you and the box into his bedroom, opening his closet door. He reached up to the top shelf, bringing down a dusty shoe box. He turned to you, sitting right down on the floor with the box in his lap. You sat across from his lap, curious. Surely he wasn't going to show you...He opened the box and you gasped softly. Pieces of paper and photographs were stacked neatly inside. 

“This is my memory box,” he explained quietly, “Would you like to see?” 

You felt like you were trespassing on some very personal territory. 

“If you're okay with me seeing.”

“Of course I am! We are dating now!” he said happily and you blushed. So he did think of you as his girlfriend. That made you happy. 

He pulled out a stack of photographs and pushed them into your hands. You set your box to the side, flipping through the polaroids with interest. They were pictures of Papyrus and Sans as kids. Papyrus had been a buck-toothed kid, a bit goofy-looking you admitted, but just as adorable as he was now. Sans pretty much looked the same, just a bit younger, if that made any sense. You wondered for how long he'd had that “Mystery Guy” schtick going. 

“Look! There I am getting ready to go to school!”

You realized that you hadn't seen any parents or adults in any of the pictures. 

“Papyrus, what were your parents like?” you asked. He stilled, his face falling into a thoughtful expression. 

“I...don't really remember. Sans says that our Dad passed away when I was very little. It's always been just Sans as I for as long as I have memory.” 

“Oh,” you said, feeling small, “Papyrus I'm so sorry I didn't mean to-” he held up a hand to stop you. 

“I was very happy with Sans. I still am! He may be lazy and he may crack dumb jokes sometimes, but he's still my big brother and I love him very much.” 

Your heart swelled. You looked through the different papers with him, remarking on the school artwork he had tucked inside the box, smiling at the saved birthday invitation he showed you. 

“I worked really hard on these invitations!” he said happily, “Nobody came that year, but I had a really nice party with Sans!” 

You grimaced, recalling what Sans had said the other day about kids bullying Papyrus. How had he stayed so damn positive? 

After looking through all the “memories” in his box, he neatly folded everything back inside and set his box to the side. 

“You're turn!” he said happily, glancing pointedly at your box. 

“Um...no...” you said slowly. 

“But I showed you my special box! Now you have to show me yours!” 

“My box isn't a memory box Papyrus,” you said awkwardly, grabbing the box and holding it to your chest so he wouldn't try to grab it before you did. He gave you such a hurt expression that you bit your lip. 

“It's...toys...” you hissed, feeling your blush creeping down your neck. 

“Toys?!” Papyrus shouted happily, “Like action figures?” 

“Sssssssh!” you said desperately. You heard a roaring laughter coming from Sans' room and you just wanted to sink below the ground, into the dirt and worms and decomposition of death. 

“I don't understand,” Papyrus said, looking at you curiously. 

“F-fine. Look then. Just don't say I didn't warn you,” you said, passing the box over to him. You glanced down at the floor as he opened the box. Papyrus made a quiet squeaking sound when he peered inside. 

“Oh...toys...” he whispered. Both of you were blushing. Both of you wanted to die. He slowly closed the lid and slid the box back over to you. You took it and left the room, going into your bedroom and shoving the box under your bed, so far you hoped to never see it again. You flopped down on your bed, covering your face with your pillow. On the left side of your front wall, the wall you shared with Sans, a knocking sound came. You ignored it purposefully. 

“smooth,” came Sans' voice. 

“Shut the fuck up Sans!” you groaned, burying yourself further into your blankets. You heard him erupt into laughter once more. That bastard. 

Remembering that you had hot water in the sink, you got up after a few minutes of sulking. Papyrus hadn't left his bedroom, you didn't think, so you crept by, making your way into the kitchen. You continued the dishes, trying to think of anything else other than what had just happened. 

You finished the dishes without interruption and you immediately started sweeping, hoping that if you swept enough you could sweep your problems away. Papyrus came out soon after, taking a seat at the table. 

“I'm sorry for forcing you to show me the box,” he said, sounding absolutely miserable, “I can't imagine how embarrassing that was for you.” 

Of course he was here, thinking about you before anything else. 

Sans walked into the kitchen. 

“You going somewhere?” you asked, eyes narrowed. 

“yeah actually I just got called into work,” he said, sounding slightly worried, “apparently something's wrong with the core. it doesn't sound like a natural problem to me.” 

“You think somebody sabotaged it?” Papyrus said, sounding nervous. 

“i wouldn't be surprised,” Sans replied, grabbing a donut out of the box on the table, “don't wait up for me, this one's probably gonna be an all-nighter.” 

You would have assumed he was doing this on purpose if he didn't look so genuinely worried. 

“Stay safe, dude” you called out to his back. 

“mhm,” he mumbled, his mouth full of donut. 

The front door slammed and you returned to sweeping, glancing up at Papyrus every so often. He was fiddling with the donut box, as if there was something he wanted to say. 

You waited, but he didn't say anything. 

“Hey Paps, you wanna watch a movie when I'm done?” you asked. 

“Sure!” he said, still obviously wanting to say something. 

“What's up?” you asked, gathering all the dust into the final pile. 

“N-nothing,” he said quickly, getting up to turn on the TV. 

You sighed, sweeping the pile into a dust pan and shoving the dirt down the garbage can. Papyrus was acting so weird now. It made you fully regret showing him that damn thing. You made your way into the living room. Papyrus had already turned something on and was staring at it intently. You sat down next to him and he seemed to stiffen. You felt a bit hurt, so you pulled away before you moved to hug him, choosing to sit in a rigid silence. The movie wasn't even that interesting. 

Eventually, you sighed, relaxing into the couch and glancing at him. You caught him glancing at you and he blushed, his eyes snapping back to the TV. 

“I'm...gonna go take a nap or something,” you said, standing up from the couch. He grabbed your wrist suddenly, his fingers wrapping around your arm lightly. 

“No don't go,” he implored. 

“Why are you acting so weird?” you demanded. 

His eyes flitted around the room, looking everywhere but at you. 

“I guess I just...I don't know,” he said, sounding even more miserable. 

“Papyrus, you ought to talk to me. If we're gonna date then we need to start with open communication,” you told him, “I've been in too many relationships where one of us refused to tell the other what was bothering us, and the relationship fell apart just because of that.” 

“You've dated before?” he asked.

You felt a stab of guilt. No, no, you didn't need to feel guilty for that.

“Yeah, but none of them were ever very serious...” you said truthfully. 

“Did you...ever...” he stumbled across his words, stopping in the middle as if something had burned his tongue. 

You knew what he was getting at. God, you normally weren't so nervous about stuff like this. Why were you all of a sudden so nervous around Papyrus? 

“Yeah,” you said quietly, “I've done stuff before. In college.”

He nodded, still refusing to look at you. He hesitated, then leaned in to kiss you. You opened up to him, letting his tongue dance with yours. He pulled you closer, pushing you to sit on his lap like last night. You held tightly onto him, your hands reaching up to brush the back of his neck with your fingertips. He shuddered against you, his eyes closed in a quiet, peaceful happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be NSFW, just fyi.


	8. Chapter 8: Want

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> NSFW!!! 
> 
> This is my first time writing nsfw so please be gentle with me.

You and Papyrus sat on the couch together, pressed up close against each other. His tongue traced your lips, and suddenly he bit down, tugging it softly. Your breath hitched and he opened his eyes, looking at you in wonder. His eye was beginning to glow dimly. You pulled him in closer, your mouth moving down to his collarbone. He let out a gasp as you kissed it, your tongue slipping out to trace the grooves on his shoulder. He grasped at your shirt, his fingers squeezing your sides tightly. 

“H-heh,” he voiced quietly, his fingers beginning to trace the patch of skin between your shirt and your pants. 

You moved a bit further down, taking control. You pushed him back into the couch, letting the back of his head rest against the top of the cushion. You moved down the bottom of his chin, down his neck and slowly beginning to lick the parts of his ribcage you could get to above his shirt. Papyrus started breathing heavier, his fingers entwining themselves in your shirt. You moved his shirt up and he let you pull it over his head. You smiled up at him, making sure that you had his permission before continuing; he looked down at you with a look in his eyes you had never seen before. Pleading, a desperate need.

You continued, your mouth moving to suck slowly on each rib. He squirmed underneath you, beginning to pant. 

“Mmmm,” you mumbled into his chest and he shivered. 

“Let me,” he breathed, and you allowed him to pull you back up. He slid your shirt off nervously, his fingers playing along your sides sweetly. You reached around your back, unhooking your bra and letting it fall to the floor. 

“W-wait,” he said breathlessly before picking you and your clothes up, carrying you over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. You started laughing. 

“Papyrus what are you doing?” you said, a giggle in your voice. He walked to the kitchen and then back into your room, laying you down on the bed and setting your shirt and bra down on the floor. He took a breath, as if steadying himself, before turning to look at you. You smiled at him devilishly, slowly unbuttoning your pants and pulling them down an inch at a time. His eyes followed your movements and he licked his lips without thinking about it. You smiled brighter, the power you held over him intoxicating you. Finally you pulled your pants off, leaving you only in your panties, laying with your head against the pillows on your bed. He just stared, his eyes taking in every curve and line of your body. 

“Papyrus,” you said, holding a hand out to him. He gulped, then walked over, taking your hand. You pulled him in, laying a kiss on his teeth. His tongue was out once more, but this time it was his turn to end the kiss. He moved his head down, his eyes looking back up at you pleadingly. 

“Mmm,” you moaned, arching your back in a physical act of permission. He glanced down at your chest, his tongue slowly moving to roll your nipple underneath it. You gasped, his tongue felt so cold against you. You arched into his mouth and he closed his eyes, sucking lightly on your nipple. Gently, he bit down on it. 

“Oooh, Papyrus,” you moaned as a jolt of pleasure shot through you. He glanced up at you, a bright blush on his cheeks. You suddenly realized that this was his first time...you had been his first kiss, after all. 

You gave him an encouraging smile and he smiled back, moving to your other breast, slowly licking at you until your nipples were hard against his tongue. Every little sound you made seemed to send a shiver down his back. He started to move down to your stomach but you stopped him, pulling him back up and spinning around on the bed, pinning him underneath you as you straddled his hips. You “accidentally” felt yourself grinding against him and he let out a soft “ssss” of pleasure, his arm draping across his face as if he couldn't take it. You moved down, placing your knee in between his legs and pressed into him just a tiny bit. 

He let out a breathy moan, his fingers finding their place in the sheets beside him. You moved your fingers up and down his ribs, getting closer to his hips every time. Finally, you began to trace his hips, sliding deeper down his bones. He had his eyes closed, enjoying your touch. Something yellow started glowing underneath his shorts, and you really wanted a look at it. You moved your mouth down to lick at his hip bones, sliding your tongue closer to his waistband every time. Eventually you slipped your tongue under the waistband of his shorts and he bucked into you, gasping. You giggled as he blushed. 

“S-sorry,” he tried to say, but he stopped as you began sliding the shorts off of him. With a sly smile you flung his shorts to the floor, glancing down at him. There was a summation of his magic, a bright yellow cock, underneath you pulsing in excitation. Taking it in stride, you grinned up at him, slowly bringing your mouth down to kiss it's head. He was staring at you with lidded eyes, clouded over with lust until your hot breath and soft lips started running against his member. He arched, clenching his jaw, his eyes closed tightly. 

“Oh,” he moaned, “Oh, oh my.” 

You moaned quietly to yourself, sliding his cock between your teeth slowly, pulling him into your mouth. He let out a breathy moan, gritting his teeth hard, as if trying with all of his power not to push it into your throat. You teased him, pulling it out of your mouth once more, sliding your tongue across the tip. He moaned louder. 

“P-please,” he begged and you felt your lower regions start burning with a fiery passion. 

You enveloped him, as deep as you possibly could without choking, using your hand to stroke what you couldn't reach. He bucked into you, letting out a yelp. 

“Mmm, Papyrus,” you hissed after coming up for a breath, “You taste so good.” That seemed to drive him crazy. His eye flared orange and he grabbed you, spinning you around like you had done with him, pinning you underneath him. You started breathing heavily. Seeing this...controlling side of him. It turned you on like you couldn't believe. 

“Stay,” he said, his eye flaring, a dark growl in his voice. Your breath hitched. This was something completely different. This was...

You lost your ability to think as he pulled your panties off, his fingers gently touching your inner thighs. He was so close to you. You quivered in want as he dropped your panties on the floor and turned to you with a nervous but determined smile. He started slowly guiding his cock along your entrance, rubbing up and down your folds and teasing your clit. You groaned loudly, grabbing at his arms, and he seemed shocked and curious about the responses he had pulled from you. 

“Mmf, fuck, Papyrus please,” you begged, your body craving him. Electricity sparked along your skin, your mind fuzzy. 

He squeezed his eyes shut, his fingers sliding along your body as if he couldn't get enough of you. You wrapped your legs around his waist, lifting up your hips needfully. He took a deep breath, trying to choke down the nervous feelings that were swimming around in his head. Slowly, he slid his cock inside of you and you moaned uncontrollably. He was so big, it felt inhuman. It slid deeper and deeper until it reached the very back of you, filling you up completely. You gasped, clutching at his ribs, pulling him close to you. He moaned as he started moving in and out of you, pumping slowly. He gathered speed, sliding faster. His eyes shot open, staring at you and you looked straight back, both of you delirious in lust and pleasure. He fell onto his hands and knees as he fucked you, kissing you desperately and passionately. 

“I never thought you could love me back,” he moaned into your ear and your skin shivered with his voice. 

“I was so afraid of scaring you,” he moaned, his emotions coming to the surface full force in the heat of the moment. Suddenly, he shifted his position and started hitting in just the right spot. It sent you over the moon. 

“Oh Papyrus, right there! Right there, fuck!” His eye flashed even brighter, and he increased his speed, hitting that spot exactly right. Wet sounds came from your movements and you blushed bright, your hand grasping at thin air until it found his neck. 

“You feel so good,” he hissed, moaning your name softly. You held on close. 

“I'm gonna...I'm gonna...” you moaned. 

“Fuck,” he moaned into you, and that was what tipped you over. 

You'd never experienced an orgasm like that. It rippled through you like a wave of ecstasy, pouring into your very cells. It moved up your body, shooting straight through your neck and into your brain, making it buzz and quiver. He shivered into you, shoving his dick as deep as it would go as he filled you up with his cum. You both rode your orgasms out together, breathing heavy and holding onto each other tightly. The love...the passion...it twitched and came alive in your breaths and your whimpers, tying your hearts together in a heavy rope. 

“Oh my god,” you said with a gasping breath. Papyrus flopped down on the bed beside you, his cock dissipating into thin wisps of magic. You both laid there, enjoying the after-effects until suddenly he was pulling you close, his arms wrapping around you so lovingly that you wanted to cry. You tucked yourself into him, letting his ragged breathing lull you into a relaxed rest. 

“Will you be with me forever?” he asked, his voice quiet but bursting with a childlike innocence. 

You couldn't make that promise to him. You'd made that promise to so many others before and you had broken their hearts or they had broken yours. Life didn't turn out like a fairytale. It lulled you into a false sense of confidence, and then stripped you of your love and trust, leaving you naked and raw and hurting. You couldn't do that to him. 

And yet...

Laying here, your bodies entwined with one another, you began to feel rebellious. Why couldn't life be a fairy tale? You would fight. You would fight so so hard to keep this relationship together. He was worth it, and more. You knew, deep in your heart, that you were simply falling prey to the hormones, like everyone else you'd ever fallen in love with. But this time felt so different, so genuine, so loving. 

You took a breath and hoped to God it wasn't you imagining things, opened your mouth and said “I promise.” 

* * *

Sans woke you up coming home late that night. You heard him stomping through the house, grabbing something from the fridge and then slamming the door to his bedroom. 

You poked at Papyrus' shoulder, whose eyes blinked open. 

“Sans is home. He sounds upset. Maybe you should go talk to him...” you said. 

Papyrus sighed, stretching into his pillow. 

“Sans comes home drunk a lot. I wouldn't doubt if that was the case. It might be best to leave him alone.” 

Papyrus turned over onto his stomach, sliding his arm underneath a pillow and resting his head on it. His eyes closed once more. 

You weren't so sure. You hadn't heard Sans fumbling with anything. He'd moved quickly and precisely...much too coordinated to be drunk. You slipped out of your bed as Papyrus nestled deeper into the pillow. You padded out of the room, your bare feet making no noise. Out in the hallway, you lightly rapped on Sans' door. 

“what?” came a deep, growling voice. 

“Sans it's me. I just wanted to see how you were doing,” you spoke into the door. 

“oh i'm just fine and dandy,” his voice snarled at you. 

“What happened? Were you not able to fix the core?” 

The door was suddenly pulled open, causing you to teeter slightly. 

“i fixed it fine,” he growled, shoving past you to head to the kitchen. 

“Then what's wrong?” you pressed. You knew you were crossing the line a bit, but he was starting to really worry you. 

“why the fuck do you care?” he muttered angrily, grabbing a bottle of ketchup out of the fridge. 

“You...you just seem upset is all,” you tried to defend. 

“well, dude,” he said, his voice scathing, “if I wanted your help I would have asked for it, don't you think?” 

“Y-yes,” you answered. 

“glad that's settled then,” he hissed, walking back into his bedroom and slamming the door behind him. 

You stood in the kitchen, feeling very dumb. Of course he wouldn't want to talk to you. Why would he? You barely knew him and you were already pushing yourself onto him like a...lost puppy. You felt tears sting in your eyes. You knew you shouldn't be thinking about what Undyne had said, she had said those words out of anger and she hadn't meant them. But they had stricken you to your core because of how close they were to the truth. You played with the threads on your shirt, absentmindedly picking at them as your mind raced in circles. 

You should head back to bed. You didn't want Sans to come out and see you standing where he left you, like an idiot. You paced back to your bedroom and crawled into bed with Papyrus, curling into him. Even in his sleep, he pulled you closer, and you couldn't help but give a small smile at his subconscious act of love. Everything about Papyrus was so loving. You knew that you could deal with anything if he was at your side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's shorter than the others. I didn't want to move in in the story after that.


	9. Chapter 9: Over-emotional, much?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Crazy long chapter to make up for the crazy short one before it.
> 
> Warning: Graphic Violence

That morning was tense. When you woke up, you were alone in the bed. Rolling over to check your phone, you saw that it was already 10 in the morning. You blew air out through your teeth, closing your eyes and stretching. Sans was likely already at work, and there was a possibility that Papyrus was at work as well. 

You got up, slipping out of your pajamas and into your regular clothes. Walking into the kitchen, you saw Papyrus sitting at the table, a steaming cup of tea in his hands. He looked up at you with a small smile. 

“Hello!” he called, his voice cheerful. 

“What's up Paps?” 

You saw him wince a bit, but he gave you a big grin. 

“I was about to head out to work!”

“Great! You want me to go with you again? I bet those rose bushes are ready to be pruned!” 

He glanced down at his tea. 

“Um...actually, human, I was wondering if I could go alone? I was kind of hoping for some time to think.” 

You understood that. But he had just called you human. You'd gotten used to him using your name already, and it felt weird hearing it again. 

“S-sure,” you murmured. He glanced up at you with a gracious look in his eyes. 

You sat down at the other chair, your fingers beginning to tap on the surface nervously. 

“Did something happen?” 

Papyrus squirmed.

“No,” he said, but his eyes said yes. You gave him a stern glance and he relented immediately. 

“Sans and I might have...had a fight this morning,” he said stiffly. 

You bit your tongue, knowing where this was going. 

“He...he asked me to tell you not to get involved in his business anymore. I told him that he shouldn't be so mean, but he...um...didn't listen.” 

You hesitated, almost drawing blood from biting your tongue so hard. 

“What else did he say?” you asked, fearing for the worst. 

“Nothing else!” Papyrus said, his eyes pleading for you to stop questioning. You stood up from the table and walked over to the fridge, not wanting him to see how badly your eyes were swimming. 

“O-okay. I understand. Go do what you need to, I'll give you some space.” 

He stood up from the table as well, gathering his things. 

“I...I told you that it would be best to leave him alone. Sans just gets this way sometimes. Maybe it might be better if...” he couldn't seem to finish. Instead, he walked out the door. 

He didn't need to finish, you'd heard it loud and clear. 

It would have been better for you to listen to me, you fucking moron. You've caused a rift in this family already and you haven't even been a part of it a full day. 

You cleared your throat, determined not to cry. You heard Papyrus' car pull away and your fingers clenched into fists. 

This wasn't going to work out. You went back into your bedroom and glanced around. Thank God you hadn't finished unpacking your things. You shoved any and all emotions you might be having deep down inside yourself as you repackaged all your stuff. When you were finished you glanced up and, seeing that it was already 2, went to grab some lunch. You swung the fridge open and couldn't find any real food to eat. There was some leftover spaghetti that looked quite old, and several bottles of ketchup in the fridge's doorway. You sighed. You could grab something to eat on the way back to your apartment. You grabbed your car keys and began loading your items, a box at a time. It only took 30 minutes or so until all your stuff was packed away. Except your bed of course. You could ask to get that later, you didn't mind sleeping on your couch. 

Glancing around inside their kitchen, you grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from your purse, quickly writing out a note before placing it on the kitchen table and walking out of the house. You made sure to lock the door behind you, then got into your car. Your boxes were stacked precariously in the backseats, the trunk and the passenger seat, but you had managed to fit everything. You pulled out and drove out of the neighborhood. 

You blasted your car radio, focusing on the beat of the music and letting your mind go blank. 

They didn't need your baggage. Honestly what else were you expecting? Them to come and accommodate your needy whining and constant pity parties? You felt incredibly bitchy, for cutting things off with Papyrus a mere two days after getting together. But it would be better for him now instead of later, when, after hundreds of disasters he was finally sick of you. You knew what it was like. A good guy puts up with your shit for so long, intent on loving you. Then, when he finally realizes that you aren't worth it, he feels like shit for breaking up with you. It hurts you a lot, but it hurts the good guy more. You couldn't bring yourself to let Papyrus put himself through that. 

You shook your head violently. You'd been trying to get rid of these thoughts for now. Don't think, just move. Just be. You'd move on soon enough and all would be right with the world. 

You couldn't afford to lose your cool again.

You pulled into the Walmart parking lot, hoping to grab some groceries before heading home. You groaned as you realized how little space you had in the car. Oh well, you'd find room somewhere. 

You walked in, hurrying past the pedestrian walkway as a car honked angrily at you. You snagged a small shopping basket and began to browse. 

You could buy something to eat for lunch here. After grabbing the necessities you knew you were missing at home: bread, eggs...your milk was probably close to going bad, you glanced around and decided on a healthy meal of pizza rolls for lunch and supper. 

“Because fuck health,” you muttered to yourself with a laugh that sounded surprisingly bitter. You grabbed a bag and went to check out, your eyes glazed over. 

The lady behind the counter looked just as out of it as you were, but that was probably from boredom. She scanned all the items mindlessly, dropping them into a paper bag and then gesturing to it after you paid. 

“Thanks,” you said, giving her a big smile. She didn't smile back, but you just shrugged it off. You knew how taxing retail could be personally. Walking back out to your car, you suddenly felt the hairs on your arms stand on end. As if someone were watching you. You doubled your pace, crossing the parking lot and cursing yourself for parking so damn far away. By the time you got to your car, there was a small group of men definitely following you. There were cameras here. All Walmarts kept cameras out in the parking lot right? No way would they try anything. 

You opened up your car door, sliding into it. As you went to close the door, a man approached quickly, stepping right in between you and the door. 

“I have a gun. If you want to live, you'll walk with us,” he said slowly. His hand was tucked into his jacket menacingly and you felt your mouth go dry. He peeked just a snippet of his gun out of his jacket, to let you know that it was real before stuffing it back into his clothes. You swallowed hard and slid back out of the car, leaving your groceries behind in the driver's seat. 

Tall man, likely 6' 2”, Caucasian, dark brown hair. You couldn't tell the color of his eyes because you didn't want to stare at him too much. He had two other guys walk on either side of you as they led you down an alleyway. 

Fuck, fuck, fuck. There was nothing you could do. Maybe they just wanted your wallet. You didn't have much money in there. Maybe they wanted your phone? You clung to the hope that they were robbers, but then why would there be three of them? You walked and walked until finally they stopped you. The man, you supposed the leader, told the other guys to turn you around. The two men grabbed your hair, pulling it so that you turned around. They shoved your back into the alley wall, their hands on your shoulders and throat, just tight enough to make it difficult to breathe.  
“What do you want you sick fucks?” you wheezed. The man got really close to you, so close that you could smell his breath. 

“Now this would normally be the part where we raped you, you know,” he chuckled, and you started shaking. 

“Heh, don't worry doll. We wouldn't even think about that. Not with you.”

You felt a small tinge of hope, until...

“Not with a monster slut like you. You disgusting bitch.” 

There was a sharp pain in your head and you realized he'd brought the hilt of his gun down on your head. Your vision went dark. 

“No...we just want to teach you a little lesson. About humans and monsters and where both of things belong...” you felt him grabbing your hair, pushing it back into the brick wall, “And where they do not.” 

Pain. Pain everywhere. They ruthlessly beat into you, laughing when you slid down the wall and curled into the fetal position. They started to kick, slamming their boots down onto your head and your hands and your legs. Your right leg snapped under the pressure of one of their boots and you screamed. 

“Quiet bitch!” one of the men said and suddenly you were gagged and thrown against the wall once more. You tasted iron and you felt so much pain in your chest that it was hard to breathe. 

“Papyrus...” you said, or you tried to. The words didn't even come out as a whisper and instead you mouthed them, squeezing your eyes shut, trying to keep the dripping blood out. 

“Papyrus please come save me,” you mouthed, feeling one of them hold your hand down onto the ground. You felt your hand split into a mind-numbing pain as one of your fingers were broken. 

But nobody came. 

It felt like an eternity until they stopped. There was some sort of ruckus down the alleyway. Some shouting. Some gunshots. You felt a new pain tear into you and you lost consciousness, slipping into a sleep that was anything but restful. You felt hands carrying you. You felt yourself being moved on what felt like a stretcher. 

So somebody had found you. Your half-living mind sighed with relief, then lost it's consciousness once more. 

* * *

You woke up to your sister's face. She was asleep on a chair beside where you lay. You glanced down, realizing that you couldn't move. In a panic, you moved your eyes around, trying to understand where you were. 

You were in a hospital, lying on a hospital bed. You couldn't move because nearly all of your body was wrapped up in hard casts. Tears began to slide down your face as you started to remember everything that had happened. 

Your sister looked tired. You wondered how long she'd stayed by your side...how long you'd been out. Were you even supposed to be awake yet? You still felt very tired, and you could feel something pulling on your brain, lulling you back to sleep. Probably whatever drugs they had doped you up with. You wondered what had happened to Papyrus and Sans. Had they fixed the fight they'd been having? Did Papyrus hate you for leaving? You would have hated yourself. 

* * *

Papyrus had spent way more time gardening than he needed to, completely lost in thought. He felt terrible about snapping at you like that. It wasn't really your fault for inquiring after his brother. He knew that you were just worried about him. Papyrus was worried too, but you didn't understand how touchy Sans could be about those types of things. 

Papyrus didn't know what had happened to make Sans so upset, but he knew it wasn't good. He hoped it wasn't something major with the core. The monsters had made a lot of leeway in monster-human diplomacy because of their ability to supply energy from the core. If the core stopped working, there was a possibility that progress would stall, or even backtrack. 

It was around 3 by the time he was done. Not much had needed to be done on the lawn. You were surprisingly good at lawn care, and both you and he had gotten a lot done that had been on his to-do list for a while. He sighed, clasping and unclasping his bony hands. He needed to get back to you, to let you know that he wasn't upset with you. With a grunt he got up from his knees and gathered his things. It wasn't your fault for not knowing about Sans, and it certainly wasn't your fault that Sans was being so prissy. Papyrus sighed unhappily, wishing that for once Sans would just talk to him.

It didn't take him long to get home. He noticed at once that your car was gone. 

Maybe you had gone to the store...or gone to visit a friend. He felt a pang of jealousy, suddenly wondering about the guy you'd talked about before, Petey. But no. He couldn't believe that you would do that. You were a good person inside, he just knew it. He blushed slightly, remembering what had happened last night. You had been so perfect, so soft, so loving. It had been everything he'd ever dreamed of. He was so, so happy that he'd lost his virginity to you. 

He switched on the living room light, suddenly feeling off. There was something not right about this, but he couldn't identify what it was. He walked into the kitchen and noticed a slip of paper on the table. He picked it up and read it, his hands beginning to shake. 

“I am sorry for causing so many problems so soon. Undyne might have not been thinking when she said it, but she was right. I'm no good for you or your family. I packed up my things and I left. I couldn't take my bed with me, but I figured I could get it from you later. I'm sorry. I really am. I wanted to make it work with you so bad, but the truth is I'm a bad person and you deserve a lot better. Please be safe and take care of those rose bushes for me. Don't feel like you have to talk to me again. I understand if you hate me. It wouldn't be the first time.” 

Your name was printed clearly on the bottom. It took a full minute to process the information. He hadn't even begun to understand fully when Sans walked into kitchen with him. 

“what did I tell you, brother. i told you to be careful with her,” he hissed, his eyes shining dimly, “after all, she's still a human.” 

Papyrus tried so hard to stay strong in front of his brother. 

“It's...okay...it's...her choice,” he said, his voice breaking as he dissolved into tears. 

“yeah well, she could have made that choice before she slept with y-”  
“This is your fault!” Papyrus roared, his eye flashing into a bright orange fire. 

“what?” Sans choked, “what did I do?”

“You made her think she wasn't wanted! You made her think this was the only option for her! You are so selfish, Sans!” Papyrus' voice was so loud that Sans began to twitch nervously. 

“i didn't tell her to pack up and leave!” Sans defended. 

“No! But you made it seem like we didn't care that she cared for us! Can you imagine how that must have looked to someone who was trying so hard to get on our good side already?!” 

“you're the one who left her all alone in the house!” Sans roared back, overcoming his shock at Papyrus' anger. 

Papyrus' eye extinguished immediately. 

“Oh...oh my god,” he whispered, falling into a chair. 

“...that's...that's not what I meant bro,” Sans said, suddenly worried.

“Oh my god you're right. I left her when she was feeling guilty and sad. I must have made her think that I was too angry to talk with her.” Tears started slipping down his face. 

“Sans...Sans I loved her. I don't know what I'm going to do without her.” 

“you've only known her a week and a half,” Sans said slowly. 

Papyrus sniffed. 

“we'll talk with her and get a read on how she's feeling okay? let her know that this was a misunderstanding. maybe she doesn't really want to leave.”

Papyrus took a deep breath, thinking about Sans' words. 

“O-okay.”

“i think you should call her,” Sans suggested. 

Papyrus nodded, bringing his phone out and pressing the quick dial. The phone started ringing, and was answered quickly. 

“_____, this is Papyrus,” he said, trying to keep the tears out of his voice. 

“Papyrus? Are you known as Paps?” said a voice on the other end that Papyrus did not recognize. 

“Y-yes?” he answered. 

“I was just about to call you. My name is Officer Morris of the ECPD. You are listed as one of _____'s emergency contacts.”

“Okay?” 

“I need to let you know that ______ is in the hospital,” the voice said. 

Papyrus stood in a panicked silence. The voice continued. 

“She was encountered in an alleyway close to Walmart. Her condition is critical and she is being operated on currently.”

“W-when can I see her?” was all Papyrus managed to get out. 

“I'm not sure when she'll be out of surgery. I have notified the rest of her family and they are on their way.”

“Okay.”

“Thank you, Mr. Papyrus. And I am very sorry for the sad news.” 

Papyrus hung up the phone, his eye sockets empty. 

Sans shuffled his feet, looking very nervous. 

“Th-that wasn't _____?” 

Papyrus shook his head, sinking lower in his chair. 

“______ is in the hospital. She was attacked in an alleyway and is currently in surgery,” Papyrus repeated back to Sans, his voice sounding as if he were in a daze. 

“what? shit! we need to go there now!” Sans said, his eyes growing wide, “come on let's go!” 

Papyrus put a hand on his brother's chest as the smaller skeleton tried to pass him. 

“Sans...” he said quietly, “She will have her family with her. What if we just get in the way? Will she even want us there?” 

Sans looked shocked, “i can't believe you would even say that bro! come on, let's go!”

Papyrus let Sans tug on his hand and the two of them walked outside. Sans immediately warped to the hospital parking lot, not even adding the effect of passing scenery like he normally did. The two of them walked into the waiting room. A nurse glanced up from her desk and made a surprised squeal. Sans narrowed his eye, walking forward. 

“we're here for ______,” he said, irritation in his voice. 

She had grown pale when he'd started walking forwards, but she cleared her throat anyways. 

“She is in surgery currently, but you two can sit in the waiting room until she is ready to see people, if you wish.” 

The two skeletons turned to take a seat and were met by two hard stares. Two women sat close together. They looked so alike you that Papyrus almost rushed to hug them, but their faces were turned up in an expression that Papyrus had never seen on your face before. Sans sauntered over, sitting right across from them. Papyrus joined him, and the four of them sat in a heated silence. 

“so, did _____ clone herself or are you beautiful girls her family?” Sans said in an overly cheerful voice. Papyrus knew that Sans was up to something. He was always up to something when his grin grew that big. 

“And how do you know my daughter?” the older woman said, her mouth twisted in a polite smile that didn't really suite her. 

“oh my brother here is her boy-” Papyrus jabbed Sans in the gut, giving him a not-so-subtle glare.

“We are her friends,” Papyrus answered. 

“Really,” your Mother said, her eyes narrowing into slits. Papyrus did not feel comfortable talking with this woman. Not comfortable at all. 

“And how long have you been friends?” asked the girl beside the Mother, her voice nasally and timid. 

“About a week and a half,” Papyrus said before Sans jabbed Papyrus right back in the gut. Papyrus looked to see Sans' eyes widen in a stare that said, “Don't tell them anything.” 

Papyrus gave a subtle nod before turning back to the two women. 

The Mother had pursed her lips so tightly, Papyrus wondered if they could ever be moved from each other. They did when she spoke once more. 

“I will not allow two monsters,” she said the word monsters with as much distaste as if she were talking about a cockroach, “to stalk my daughter around like lecherous animals.” 

Papyrus put a hand on San's arm, immediately regretting letting his brother drag him to the hospital. 

“i don't believe that's your choice, friend,” Sans said, his voice dangerously low. 

“Let's...just go,” Papyrus breathed. 

“fuck no!” Sans said in indignation. Your mother jolted at the rude language as if Sans had burnt her. 

“we're here to see _____. if this bitch doesn't like having us around, then she can leave.” 

Papyrus noticed the lady behind the desk worriedly calling someone on the phone. He grit his teeth, pulling on Sans' arm. 

“Sans,” he hissed, urging his brother to get up. Sans shook him off his arm, settling down into the chair with a stubborn determination. 

Not two seconds later, a pair of security guards appeared beside the skeletons. 

“We're going to have to ask you to leave,” the guards said, bearing down at them imposingly. 

“But...we haven't done anything wrong!” Papyrus cried. 

“Don't make us tell you again,” the other security guy said. The two skeletons rose from their chairs. Papyrus saw your Mother smiling smugly at them, and he felt a surge of anger. 

No. He had to keep himself in check. For you. Even if that meant not being able to see you until later. 

He and Sans were kicked out. Sans threw back a handful of curse words at the guards, but Papyrus was already walking away when he turned back. 

“bro?” he called out. 

“You head home,” Papyrus called back, sounding miserable, “I...need some time to think.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote the next couple chapters, but I'm not very happy with how they turned out, so I'm gonna be rewriting them. I'll post them as soon as they're ready. I want them to be perfect.


	10. Chapter 10: The Beginning of Something Bad

You woke up feeling sore and angry. It didn't help that your Mother was there, immediately laying into you.

“I am very glad that you are okay, _____,” she started and you knew that the 'but' was coming, “But I am very disappointed in you!” 

You sighed, turning your head slightly to look at her, “Why?” 

“Keeping two monsters around, as if they were your pets? Do you know how dangerous that is? Well you do now!” She pointed at your casts accusingly. 

“I've seen the news reports! I know that you were attacked because you've been fraternizing with them,” she hissed, dropping her voice down as if she were afraid of someone finding out. 

You noticed your sister sitting in a chair close by. 

“Hey Maurice,” you said. She waved a bit before your Mother glared her into obedience. 

“Pay attention to what I am saying! This is very important!” she yelled at you, her face growing a bit red, “You are not to mess around with those two crude skeletons anymore!” 

“Crude?” you asked. 

Maurice giggled, “He used the F word,” she mouthed. It would normally have been amusing to see her so excited if she wasn't fucking 23 years old. 

“Wait...you saw them? Are they here?” you asked. 

“No,” your Mother scoffed, “They got kicked out for making a ruckus and they haven't been back.” 

Your eyes narrowed, immediately knowing what 'ruckus' they might have made. You saw your phone on the table beside you, and you moved to grab it, but groaned when you realized you couldn't move your right arm that far.

“Hey,” you called Maurice, “Would you grab my phone for me?” 

“Why?” your Mom asked. 

“I want to call a friend,” you said. 

“You're going to call those animals aren't you? You know that they're just that! They are lecherous and evil and they pretended to be your friend to take advantage of your...womanhood!” she gasped. 

You rolled your eyes, “You know nothing about them Mom. Now will you please help me call my boyfriend?” 

Your Mother's face went pale. 

“B-boyfriend?” 

Uh-oh. 

* * *

It was almost thirty more minutes before the nurses came in, shooing your Mother out, looking exasperated. Maurice followed her, tagging along like she always did. 

You relaxed finally. 

“Please don't let them back in,” you said quietly. The nurse hesitated, then nodded. 

“Oh!” you called suddenly and she jumped, startled. 

“Sorry,” you apologized, “But could you help me call my boy...” you trailed off, suddenly remembering the note you had left Papyrus, “my...my friend. Please?” you asked, your eyes begging. 

“Of course,” she said gently. You'd always felt comfortable with nurses around. There was something about their presence that relaxed you. The nurse grabbed your phone and you recited the number for her to call. She keyed in the number, turned it on speaker phone and then set the phone into your left hand. You thanked her as it rang and she nodded, exiting the room for a bit. 

The phone was answered before the first rang had even died. 

“YES?” said a loud voice on the other end. 

“Papyrus!” you said, so happy to hear his voice that you temporarily forgot what you'd called for. 

“_____ I am so sorry! So so so sorry!” he said, his voice suddenly sounding wet. Oh my god, was he crying? 

“No! I should be the one apologizing! I shouldn't have left so suddenly without talking to you guys. It was dumb and overly emotional and I'm sorry.” 

“And I am sorry for leaving you while you were in an obvious state of distress! It was very selfish of me and I regret it massively!” 

A few seconds passed in which you thought hard. 

“I said in my note that I didn't think it was going to work out...” you muttered.

“Y-yes you did,” he said, his voice shaky. 

You hesitated. 

“Could you come over?” you asked. 

“What about your...”

“I kicked my Mom out. She was bumming me out,” you laughed. 

“We'll be there soon!” he said, and the message went to the dial tone. 

The nurse came back soon after, obviously hearing the dial tone. 

“Um...my friends are coming over. Is that okay?” you asked. She nodded. 

“They're...um...both monsters,” you continued. She paused, her hand freezing over the IV bag she'd been messing with. But she continued quickly. 

“If they are your friends then there is no issue whatsoever. Just as long as they don't yell at you like your Mother did. That wasn't good for you,” she mumbled, as if to herself. Then she blushed and quietly left. 

You couldn't have agreed more. 

Wait...had Papyrus said we? Did that mean Sans was coming too? You swallowed hard. You couldn't imagine what Sans thought of you now, after that stunt you'd pulled. You'd just have to talk to Papyrus with Sans...in the room...watching you. 

You shuddered. 

Not five minutes later, the nurse opened your door again, leading in your guests. Sans must have teleported. Papyrus walked through, rushing to your side with a cry. 

“_____!” he said, “I had no idea you're injuries were so extensive!” 

“you look like shit,” said a familiar voice behind him. 

“Thanks,” you said snarkily. 

Papyrus was babying you, patting your hair and talking about how he wished he could have been here with you before but the Hospital Guard had kicked them out and your Mother had been watching very carefully to make sure they didn't sneak through. 

“Yeah I'm sure she was,” you growled, “But...Papyrus...I have to ask you something.” 

Papyrus looked at you with big eyes. You noticed Sans subtly walk out the door and you reminded yourself to thank him later. 

“Papyrus...when I wrote that note, I wasn't thinking very well. I was upset because I had hurt you and Sans' relationship and I didn't want to be a divider between you. I've had that happen too much and I saw how it affects the other person. But...when I...” you hesitated, feeling tears come to your eyes, “When I thought I was going to die...all I could think about was how much I regretted saying that. All I wanted was you there with me. I couldn't bear to let you get away. You make me so happy and I just...”

You were interrupted as Papyrus bent down to plant a kiss on your forehead. 

“Stop apologizing,” he said softly, “I forgave you a long time ago.” 

You tried biting back your tears, but they wouldn't stop falling. After everything that had happened, all you had wanted was to let Papyrus know that you wanted to be with him. He touched your face gingerly, careful not to move you. You cried for a long time, it felt like, until you had finally cried yourself out. Papyrus stayed silent, simply being there for you.

“What does Sans think?” you asked. 

“you can always ask me yourself, you know,” said a voice somewhere in the room. You jolted and your stomach ached with the effort. You groaned. 

“I didn't know you had come back,” you said. 

“hey paps, can _____ and I talk for a bit?” Sans asked. Papyrus glanced down at you, unsure until you nodded. Papyrus left the room and Sans replaced him at your side, moving into your view. 

“So...” you said lamely. 

“so...” he repeated, obviously feeling just as awkward. 

A moment passed before he started speaking. 

“you know, when I first read your letter I wanted to find you and beat you senseless.”

“I figured,” you said, and if you could have glanced down at the floor you would have. 

“but after hearing about what happened to you, and after mulling it over...” Sans took a breath, obviously thinking deeply about what he was about to say, “i'm trying. i really am. you seem like a nice person and i don't want to scare you off...but after what happened at the core...” his voice trailed off, his eyes growing hollow. You felt a wrench in your gut.

“What happened?” 

He stared at you, looking almost surprised, “the core was attacked. a group of humans bombed it. I got it fixed quickly, but it wasn't the core that took the most damage...” he looked away uncomfortably, “a lot of monsters were hurt in the explosion. three died. paps and i knew them.” 

Oh. 

You stared at him, your eyes growing moist again. How did your body have enough water to cry so much? 

“i guess what i'm trying to say, kid, is that i appreciate your concern for me. i'm sorry for acting like a jerk and if paps trusts you i do too. it's just...with all this happening...” 

“You...” you started, trying to find the words to say what you meant, “You're a really good friend Sans. And just about the best brother I've ever seen. I'll earn your trust,” you said, reaching up to grab his hand, “I promise.” 

He gave you a smile. A real, big, genuine smile that made you feel good down to the bottoms of your feet. You understood. You hadn't exactly spent much time with them, and if the humans started rallying against the monsters, it would be difficult to trust a stranger. You'd just have to show them.

“okay, i guess i'll be going now. but i'm gonna stick around close by in case that witch comes back.” 

You acted offended, “You ARE talking about my Mother, you know.” 

He shrugged, “doesn't make her less of a witch.”

You laughed and he grinned back, “True that. Thanks for talking with me.” 

“anytime,” he said with a wink, “now you should rest for a spell.”

“W-was that a witch pun?” you demanded, but he waved your question off and walked through the hospital door. Papyrus entered again, looking you over worriedly. 

“Are you sure that you are okay?” Papyrus asked, “Do you need me to fluff your pillow? I could give you a hand massage!” 

You grinned at how endearing he was, “Not right now but thank you. I actually am really curious. I heard that I was on the news?”

He blinked, “You didn't know? Your story's national coverage!” 

“I've been out since this morning,” you admitted and he hurriedly turned on the TV, switching to a news station. 

Damn, you really were on the news. You watched as reporters told your story in brief, sitting in front of broadcasted pictures of your broken body as it was carried to an ambulance on a stretcher. Papyrus tensed beside you. 

“I...still can't get over those pictures,” he muttered. 

You watched as Walmart security footage showed you being threatened and led away into the alleyway. You looked so scared. So tiny. It almost made you self-conscious. There was no recording of the actual beating of course. You doubted you'd be able to watch it anyways. 

“The young girl went into the hospital three days ago and has since not been available for comment. However, two of the thugs have been found and pieces of the full story have surfaced. Pheli Walters, one of the captured attackers, told the authorities that they were teaching her a lesson in retribution for her friendship and possibly romantic relationship with a group of monsters, and in revenge for their friend who was hospitalized and arrested for attempted rape last week. This attack seems to coincide with rising activity in Ebbot City from Anti-Monster activists, who have become progressively more and more violent, the most recent example being the bombing of the Monster Core.”

The TV switched to choppy videos showing large groups of humans, chanting and holding signs. It cut once more to a monster that you recognized as King Asgore. 

“I am saddened today to relay the news of the death of three of our dear friends.” Three pictures were swept across the screen. You had never met them, of course, but you felt sad nonetheless. To think of how their families were feeling...

“We fear the attack on the Core is the start of a violent push to force us back underground,” the king said, his voice low and sorrowful, “And we hope to meet and discuss with officials on what can be done about this terrorism.” 

Papyrus switched the TV off, looking angry. 

“Those people...” he breathed. He was shaking, and you knew he was trying to stay in control. 

“I have to talk with the news,” you said firmly. Papyrus stared at you in shock. 

“You can't be serious!” he said, his voice getting louder, “Just being out with me in public once was enough to get a bunch of guys to stalk you. I won't let you be more in the public eye for this than you already are!” 

You thought about Sans. You thought about Undyne and Alphys. You wanted so badly for them to trust you as purely as Papyrus did. You wanted to be friends with them. To fight with them. 

“I am serious! I'm not letting this story get twisted before I get to tell my side of it! I know what the news does, and I know what the internet does, and I bet you anything there's already dozens of stories online twisting this story to make those assholes the good guys.” 

Papyrus didn't answer, apparently thinking hard. 

“I have to get in contact with them,” you said, more to yourself than to Papyrus. 

“I...I can help do that,” Papyrus said quietly, “Just make sure you're doctor is okay with it first?” 

You nodded, your head already spinning with exactly what you wanted to say.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I wanted to thank y'all for the help you gave me last chapter. Some of you asked some questions about the story, asking about some situations that didn't seem to fit, and it forced me to really consider where I was going with the story. I feel a whole lot better about what I want to do with it now and it's thanks to you guys. So if you every have any helpful criticisms or questions or you just want to point out something that doesn't make sense, please do. Criticism helps me grow and it makes the story even better than it would be.


	11. Chapter 11: An Exorcism Fails

“wow kid, you sure like to bounce back fast. just make sure you're body's able to keep up,” Sans said as the camera crew set up in your room. You had several people on you at the time, doing your makeup and your hair. It was awkward since you couldn't move around much, but these were professionals and you were sure that they knew what they were doing. You had no idea how Papyrus had gotten the news to come interview you so quickly. You wondered if he had a contact somewhere...

“I'll be fine Sans,” you assured him. Papyrus was currently pacing the room anxiously, getting in the camera men's way. 

“Papyrus,” you called and he was at your side in an instant, peering over the busy heads of the makeup people. 

“Why don't you sit with me?” you asked, “I can hold your hand if you're on my left side.” He rushed over, sitting on the side of your bed and grasping your hand lightly. Your thumb rubbed his softly, and you were comforted by it. To be honest, you were nervous. But this wasn't some school play. You just had to explain what happened. Be honest. Be influential. Speak out against a bunch of dangerous racist people who had proven to be able to track you down just to hurt you.

Fuck. 

“And we're live with Miss ______ ______. Now Miss, can you tell us what happened with the thugs that attacked you?”

You gulped. Here goes nothing.

“There were three of them. One guy...I think he was there leader, threatened me with a gun and told me to follow them. They led me into an alley and attacked me.”

“And did they give any reason why?”

You took a breath and Papyrus squeezed your hand comfortingly, “They told me that I didn't belong with Monsters and that Monsters didn't belong with humans. They said they wanted to teach me a lesson so I wouldn't be friends with them anymore.” 

The news anchor smiled at you kindly, “And yet here you are.” The camera rose slightly, you presumed to include Papyrus. You grinned. 

The news anchor nodded solemnly, “And what would you say to people who would think that what you are doing is wrong?” 

You clenched your teeth, anger rising up in you, “I would tell them that monsters deserve as much respect and love as any human does. Monsters are beautiful souls and I have found that the monster friends I have made have treated me with love and kindness.” You neglected to mention Undyne or Sans' behavior. That was personal and wasn't really what you were talking about, “They have a culture of acceptance that is so far beyond what us humans have been capable of. I think most of us could afford to learn a thing or two from them. I know I have.” 

“What are your thoughts on the rising anti-monster activists within this very city?” he asked, and you gulped. This was it. The question that could put you on a hit list. 

“I think it's disgusting,” you said resolutely. Welp, now that you were on the hit list...“The attack on the Monster Core was a vile act of hatred, and I hope that the people responsible for it are found and punished. I might have been attacked, but my little 'fight' is nothing compared to what the monsters have been experiencing and what they will experience if we don't band together to put a stop to this useless violence.” 

“Well I commend you for your bravery in speaking out about this topic. And I wish you and your friends the best,” the news anchor spoke. He turned back to the camera, “Back to you Julie.” The camera flickered off and the news anchor turned to you. 

“Really, truly, thank you,” he said, “We don't have enough people talking about this, and while I am saddened that this has happened to you, I am happy that this issue is finally being brought up.” 

You nodded, “I just want to see my friends safe,” and he smiled down at you. His crew started picking up and you relaxed into your pillow until they left with small waves and smiling goodbyes. Papyrus came around you to sit at your right side.

“You did very well,” he said loudly. You grinned. Papyrus was acting more like himself now. It freaked you out when he was quiet and nervous...

“Mr. Papyrus,” you drawled in your best interpretation of a news anchor voice, “ Can you tell me what it's like to be dating the nerdiest girl in all of Ebbot City?” 

Papyus blinked down at you before realizing what you were doing, “Well, ______ I can say that it is very fun and quite entertaining! She may be nerdy but she's always getting into trouble and that keeps me on my toes!”

You laughed and gave him puppy dog eyes. 

“Am I more trouble than I'm worth Paps?” 

“Never!” he declared and you giggled again. 

“oh my god guys will you please stop flirting.” 

“Jesus, Sans! I saw you leave!” you protested after jolting and hurting your muscles once more. 

“how long are you gonna be in that clunker?” he said, ignoring your outrage. 

You sighed, “The doctor said it'd be a couple more weeks or so. But I can go back home by this Wednesday.”

“By the way,” Papyrus said, looking a bit nervous, “We moved your stuff back into your bedroom in our house.” 

“yeah no way in hell are we letting you live alone after this,” Sans said forcefully. 

“Okay,” you agreed. You felt relieved, you'd been meaning to ask them about that, “Thank you.”

“No need to thank us! It is what friends do!” Papyrus said, grinning down at you. You grinned back. 

“Let me see my daughter!” demanded a shrill voice. 

“Shit,” you muttered. Both Papyrus and Sans were on their feet in an instant. Your Mother came barreling through the doors, followed by a security guard who looked absolutely exasperated. Your Mother reeled back at the sight of the two skeletons. The security guard hesitated at the door, unsure of what to do. 

“How dare you kick me out,” she seethed, glaring at you. 

“Mom, I need you to-”

“No!” your mother screamed, “I will not allow this sin in my own family! You are a heathen! A slut, dancing in the companionship of demons, letting them infect you with dark, evil ideas. They have twisted you and made you something you never were! You are no longer the little girl I once knew!”

“You never even knew me Mom!” you yelled back, immediately feeling defensive. Papyrus' eye was starting to glow and you forced yourself to calm down for his sake. 

“I don't want to listen to you yell at me,” you said quietly, hoping to just make her shut up. She could think what she wanted, you just didn't want her upsetting Papyrus and Sans. 

“You just don't want to hear the truth,” she said, her face turned up in a sharp, biting expression. You rolled your eyes. 

“Don't roll your eyes at me young lady! You are returning home with me once you are better! I never should have allowed you to move out!” 

“she's her own person, lady,” Sans said, his ever present smile growing tenfold, “i think she chose who she wants in her life.” 

“Don't think you have the right to talk to me you freak,” she spat, “I have Jesus on my side and in His name you cannot open your mouth in my presence.” 

Sans laughed darkly, glancing at you. 

“you came from this weirdo?” 

You groaned, feeling the embarrassment pulsing through your blood. 

“They're not demons,” you said shortly, “And I don't like it when you talk about my boyfriend or my friend like that. Now go, Mom. Come talk to me again when you've calmed down.” 

Your Mother's eyes filled with tears and you narrowed your eyes, having seen this act before so many times. 

“Jesus please release my baby girl from the devil's hold!” she pleaded to the heavens and the security guard grabbed her shoulders, leading her away. 

“Save her soul and forgive her sins! Let not the wicked ways of these monsters destroy her soul completely! Like Lot I will sacrifice my life to begging. To you oh Lord will I-” her voice faded as she was forced down the hallway. 

“wow. you never told us your mom was nuts.” 

“I don't like to think about it...” you moaned, wishing that you could just forget the past two minutes. 

“What in the hell was that all about?” said a voice at the door. You glanced up and saw Undyne walking in, followed by Alphys. 

“Hey guys! Sorry about that,” you muttered. 

“i think _____'s mom tried to perform an exorcism on us,” Sans said. 

Papyrus turned to you, his eye no longer glowing. 

“I am sorry that we are making your mom angry at you,” he said, his voice quiet again. 

You laughed out loud, making him glance up at you in shock, “You guys have nothing to do with it. If it weren't you it'd be something else, trust me. Last thing she was praying about was that I was becoming a recluse and that that meant I had spiraled into an everlasting depression that would swallow me whole and lead me to the devil's ways.” 

Undyne laughed, setting a big vase of flowers on the side table next to you. 

“Glad you're not like her!” she grinned down at you, ruffling your hair. 

Alphys walked close, “H-hey. I wanted to thank you for wh-what you said on the news.” 

“Yeah! That was pretty cool, yah nerd!” Undyne said. 

“It's already started a lot of discussion on protecting humans and m-monsters against people like th-that.” 

“You have a lot of people rooting for you already,” Undyne said. 

You smiled, feeling incredibly happy. You were glad your plan was beginning to work. 

“Well come on! We're gonna have a party! I'll order pizza!” Undyne practically yelled. Everyone was grinning and talking. You felt like your heart was going to burst from happiness. 

* * *

That Wednesday you were allowed to head back home. You were shoved into a wheelchair and stuffed into Papyrus' car. Once at their house, Papyrus practically became your servant, constantly asking you what you needed, inquiring if you wanted the channel changed, suggesting that he could read a book to you. He was tireless in his care and it made you feel so pampered that you started feeling uncomfortable. After a few days, you were dying for some alone time. 

“Hey Paps,” you asked and he was at your side in an instant, “Shouldn't you go check on the yard work soon? You've been missing that for a while now.” 

“I do not want to leave you here if you need something!” he said.

“Well, I'm feeling kinda tired,” you said, “I was thinking about taking a nap. So now might be a good time!” you gave him a big, innocent smile. 

No, this had nothing to do with the fact that you were desperate for some peace and quiet. He pondered your idea for a few minutes before agreeing. He gathered his things, worrying over you constantly until he was finally out the door. After hearing his car pull away, you sighed deeply, relaxing into the couch. 

“you wanted him gone that bad you coulda just told me,” Sans said from behind your head. You jolted again. 

“Damnit Sans! Stop sneaking up on me!” you hissed, and he chuckled, walking over to sit on the edge of the couch, right by your feet. 

“It's not that,” you said, thinking about what he'd said, “I just...”

“felt a bit overwhelmed? yeah i know what you mean. papyrus is always like that when someone's sick.”

“Glad you're not upset with me,” you said sheepishly. 

He barked out a laugh, “i would've told it to him straight. papyrus is kind and he wants nothing more than to make you happy. he'll understand if you need some quiet time, no need to spare his feelings. he probably already guessed that that's why you wanted him gone.” 

“Hmm,” you said in response. 

“i'm gonna change the channel and there's nothing you can do because you can barely move.”

“Motherfucker,” you hissed. 

“love you too.”


	12. Chapter 12: Your Unshelling

Two weeks had passed. An entire two weeks that felt like an eternity. You had gotten to know Papyrus and Sans so well already. Their little habits, the things they did that upset each other, the little things they did that upset you. 

Like when Sans left you on the couch at night with the TV on and the remote just out of arm's reach. 

Like when Papyrus woke up at 5:30 in the morning, ready to take on the day with loud words and coffee and you had to bite your tongue to keep from cussing him out. 

There were little things that had been grating at you for days. But nothing was worse than that damn itch on your leg. 

It had started a couple days into it. Just a little itch that no amount of wriggling your leg could satisfy. You tried to ignore it, but it seemed the more you thought about it the worse it got. By the end of the week you were dying to just have it scratched. You felt gross and probably smelled gross and even though Papyrus brought you into the bathroom every day just so he could wash your hair, you were sure you looked gross. There were so many things you couldn't do, walk being the main thing. It drove you crazy. 

Petey came by a week into it with a bottle of mountain dew as a peace offering. You were terrified of getting fired after so many days gone, but Petey assured you that the store was super happy to have someone who had been on the news on their crew. Papyrus seemed really happy to meet Petey. He was apprehensive at first, then when Petey came in, glasses askew, acne pocked and shirt dirty, Papyrus had relaxed. You couldn't help but grin to yourself. Had your Paps been jealous? 

Another major issue was how fucking horny you were. 

Seriously. Every sex scene in any movie or TV show you watched just made it ten times worse, and even though Papyrus hadn't looked very put together recently (he spent all his time taking care of you!) you still couldn't help but remember your time together. Your heart would start beating and your breath would get shallow and you'd reach down to touch yourself and BOOM. You were in a cast. No touchy-feeley allowed. There was no reason for life. 

Papyrus didn't seem to notice, though he did glance down at you a couple times during a specially hardcore scene in one of Sans' sci-fi flicks. 

But finally, finally!, you were going to be cut out of your cast, like a brand new, wrinkly, stinky butterfly. You had woken up before even Papyrus had that morning. Tapping your fingers on the couch impatiently, you waited, your mind buzzing with what you would do once you were free. Ride a bike. Cook a meal. Go to work. Not watch TV, that was for sure. 

Papyrus and Sans woke up eventually, and after force feeding you some scrambled eggs (you'd been too excited to eat) you were all on your way to the hospital. The procedure went flawlessly. You were led out, immediately wrapped in a hospital gown and taken to the shower. It was so difficult to stand. You could do it...it just took a lot of effort and a lot of energy. You ended up showering while sitting down, resting your back against the plastic walls. After showering, you laboriously put on your clothes. You could have asked the nurses to help you, but you were insistent on doing things yourself. You'd been waited on for far too long. And good lord, when you finally were able to scratch that itch you felt like angels had come down from heaven and provided you a holy relief of the Gods. 

You finally made it out into the hospital room and everyone cheered. You grinned, then ended up losing your balance. Papyrus caught you with a gasp. 

“You are weak! You must rest!” 

“But I'm tired of resting!” you whined. 

The doctor entered the room, clearly uncomfortable with how many bodies were in the room, “I'm afraid you're going to need to take it slow. You lost a lot of strength while you couldn't move. I wouldn't return to work for another good while.”

You cursed in your head. You missed Nerd Heaven, as crappy as it could be sometimes. 

“And no strenuous activity until you come see me again next week,” the doctor demanded. You nodded sadly. So much for riding a bike. 

The doctor left then, saying that you could leave anytime. Undyne and Papyrus let out a cheer. 

“Let's go get pizza!” Undyne shouted. 

“I'm d-down,” said Alphys. 

Sans shrugged, a grin on his face. Everyone looked at you. 

“Sure,” you said happily, “Let's go get pizza.” 

The five of you made your way out of the hospital. You kept giving the nurses apologetic looks when Undyne and Papyrus got too loud, but all in all you were too happy to really care. Everyone piled into their cars and made their way to the closest pizza parlor. 

Undyne led the way, her car speeding down the road like a bullet. 

“P-papyrus, please don't race Undyne,” you begged. 

“But-” he started to argue, and Sans interrupted. 

“we don't wanna get in trouble with the law.”

Papyrus grumbled, upset at losing. Undyne didn't make it any better when they had both parked. 

“Yah big loser! Couldn't even get close to me!”

“I wasn't racing Undyne! Speeding is dangerous and I did not want to get in trouble with the law!” He repeated the words with a pout. 

“Psh, yeah. You were just too afraid that I would beat you into a pulp!” Undyne jeered, bouncing back and forth on her legs as she waited for you to climb out of the car. You were already feeling exhausted from all your moving around, but you tried not to let it show. 

“heh,” you heard Sans mutter to himself, “pulpyrus.” You snorted. 

“I was not afraid! I, the Great Papyrus, could never lose!” the skeleton shouted, sounding indignant. 

“Whatever!” Undyne growled playfully and Papyrus stamped his foot like a child. You walked over, slipping your hand into his. He glanced down at you and you saw his eye shining dimly. Feeling a pang of worry, you brought his hand up to your mouth and you kissed it, your eyes staring up at him. His eye diminished. 

“Do not worry, _____, I will not be incited to violence by Undyne's incessant bragging!” he declared, “Because I am a good person!” he added, his eyes sliding over bitterly to Undyne's retreating form. 

She guffawed and entered the building, letting the door close shut behind her. Sans walked in after her and you and Papyrus joined him. You didn't let go of Papyrus' hand. You had missed that.

You were all seated at the table and you slid into the booth, thankful for another chance to sit. You were so tired. But you were desperate to stay strong, you wanted to enjoy your freedom to the fullest. 

A waiter walked up, glancing over the table with barely a hint of emotion. You were glad to see that he didn't seem to care that almost all of them were monsters. Now that you thought about it, there were a couple other tables with monsters in them. You wondered if this pizza parlor had been chosen by Undyne for this reason. 

You ordered your drinks and food. Three large pizzas for the table. Normally you would have blanched at the amount of food, but the way Undyne and Alphys were talking about it, you figured some leftovers wouldn't hurt. Alphys kept the silence from falling, chattering on and on about one anime or another. Sans seemed bored, but he had a lazy grin on that indicated otherwise. Papyrus was listening intently, interjecting his opinion every once in a while. Had he seen these anime before? Undyne was very busy, her eyes trailing Alphys' face in a way that was definitely not appropriate. Alphys didn't really notice though, and you couldn't help but giggle. 

The pizza came to the table remarkably fast and you all dug in. 

It was so good. Cheesy and meltey and piled with the perfect amount of toppings. You ate your fill, feeling a burst of energy. You felt something new coursing through your blood stream and your tiredness slipped away. 

“Wha...” you said, jerking your head up. 

“What's wrong?” Papyrus asked, rubbing your hand with his thumb. 

“I feel so much better all of a sudden,” you said, almost not believing it yourself. 

“Oh th-this is monster magic,” Alphys stuttered, giving you a smile, “It has healing properties.” 

“I never knew that,” you said, your eyes glancing over the pizza, curious. 

It didn't look any different than normal pizza. Huh. 

Your phone began to ring. You went to answer it without thinking about it, but paused when you saw the caller ID. It was your mother. 

You hadn't answered a single call from her since the last time you saw her. You sighed, certain that your Mom had heard that you were out of the cast. 

“Sorry guys,” you muttered, “I should take this finally.” 

Papyrus gave your hand another squeeze before scooting out of the booth to let you through. You hurried out of the restaurant and stood a little ways from the front door, answering the ringing phone. 

“Hello?” you said, feeling very small. 

“So I heard from your doctor that you are out of the cast,” your Mom said. 

“Y-yeah,” you said. You could hear the guilt she was trying to stab you with. It...was working kind of. She was still your mother and you hadn't called to even let her know where you were. 

“So when are you moving back in?” she said, her voice snapping and cold. 

“Moving back where?” you asked, confused. 

“To your home,” she hissed, “Where you belong.”

“I actually have a home,” you responded. 

“Really? Because when I went to your apartment with a cobbler that I had made myself for you, I was greeted with another person entirely at the door and they told me that you had moved out nearly a week before your accident.” 

“Um, yeah,” you said, preparing yourself for the verbal onslaught that you knew was coming, “I moved in with my boyfriend a while ago.” 

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a long moment. 

“Living in sin,” she hissed, “You are no longer my daughter.” 

The words still hurt, no matter how many times she said them. 

“Okay,” you said, forcing yourself to sound exasperated. 

“Don't come to me ever again, I will not accept you as any relation of mine.” 

“You were the one who called me,” you mentioned and she immediately hung up on you. You let out a bitter laugh. You wouldn't let her make you cry anymore. You rejoined your friends and the evening continued, with as many laughs and awkward silences and discussions of anime that could be filled into two hours. 

When you were finally driving home with the skeleton bros, Sans said, “oh, i'm heading out to another city tonight. asgore needed me to talk about the core with some energy specialists or something and i was actually supposed to leave this morning.” 

Papyrus sputtered, “Sans! How could you not tell us!”

“Yeah!” you cried, “What if you get in trouble?” 

“i can get there pretty quick,” he said with a wink, “and I couldn't miss your unshelling.” 

You blushed, a gross shiver running down your spine. 

“You make it sound like I'm a creepy alien or something.”

“are you not?”

“You know what?” you said with a growl, “You go ahead and leave Sans. And don't come back.” He shrugged, and Papyrus laughed loudly. He'd been very happy today. It made you smile to see him so energetic finally. When you pulled into the driveway, Sans hopped out of the car and began walking down the road, giving a little wave. 

“i'll probably see you guys in the morning. have fun you crazy kids,” he said. 

“Goodbye Sans!” Papyrus called, loud enough to wake the neighbors, “Stay safe!” 

Sans laughed and then blipped out of existence. 

You shuffled your feet and Papyrus looked over at you. 

“What is it?” he asked. 

“Nothing,” you said, turning towards the house. Papyrus leaned over and pulled you around, twirling you into him as if you were dancing. You giggled, wrapping your arms around him and looking up. His eyes were sparkling in the starlight. 

“What is it?” he asked again, his voice slightly gentler as his expression softened. 

“I...I was just thinking that you and I could go to the playground again. But I'm feeling kind of tired and I doubt the doctor would be happy if I walk there so...”

In an instant you had been swept up. Papyrus took off at a run, holding you close to your chest. 

“Ack! Papyrus what-?” was all you were able to get out as he bounded down the street. You started laughing, he could run so fast! And he didn't seem to be deterred by your added weight at all. Within a minute he was standing beside the playground tree, panting. 

“H-here we are,” he said, and he began climbing the tree, still holding you close. With an arm wrapped tightly around you and the other balancing himself against the trunk, he scaled the tree and scooted onto the playground roof, laying you down as you laughed and laughed. He layed down beside you, grinning like a madman. 

“Papyrus that is not what I meant,” you said through your giggles. 

“But it is what you wanted!” he said and you nodded, unable to defend yourself. 

You let Papyrus catch his breath, staring up into the blanket of stars. They seemed to be unchanging, always beautiful. 

“Thank you for taking care of me Papyrus,” you whispered, and he leaned over to look at you. You turned your body, so happy to finally be able to move around. His face was inches from yours, his breath hot on your face. 

“I am sorry if I have been too overbearing,” he said, his voice dropping a few decibels. 

“No,” you implored, “You haven't!”

He gave you a meaningful look and you grinned sheepishly. 

“Well, maybe a little. But I think it's endearing, how much you care for me. It makes me happy to know that you would do all that for me.” 

“Hmmm,” he sighed, an arm reaching around to your waist. He pulled you close. You closed your eyes, resting into his chest. 

“I'd do the same for you, Paps,” you muttered sleepily.

“Why?” he asked, and the question surprised you. 

You laid in silence for a second, thinking hard. You wanted to answer as honestly as possible.

“Because I love you,” you said. 

His breath hitched and he pulled away. You glanced up, suddenly sick with worry. Was that too much too soon?

“I love you too _____,” he said. 

You felt a contented warmth spread through your body. You leaned in and planted a kiss on his forehead. He pulled his face up and your mouths met, lips on bone. You held each other close, enjoying the quiet of the park and how warm both of your bodies were. 

“Let's...go back to the house,” Papyrus said. 

“Okay,” you said into his neck. Papyrus sat up and picked you up gently, climbing down the tree with ease and slowly walking away. You grabbed around his waist, pulling him in and breathing in his scent. God, he smelled so good. And he carried you so effortlessly. Papyrus might have been loud and brash, but the large amount of power he had kept surprising you. He walked a step at a time, and you listened to the crickets and to his breathing. When you were finally at the house, he set you down and let you go first. Once you were in the door, Papyrus came after you and closed it decisively. He put a hand on the doorway, before turning around. His eye glowed a bright orange, and he advanced on you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter will contain NSFW again. Thanks for being patient! I had a crap ton of schoolwork to get done these past few days!


	13. Chapter 13: Please

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING!!! NSFW. Light Dom. Nothing too bad.

“Papyrus?” you breathed, fear coursing through your body before he grabbed you, pulling you around and shoving you hard against the door. His bony fingers wrapped around your wrists, holding them up on either side of your head. His face drew close to yours, the flame in his eye flickering across your skin painlessly. 

“I...I need you,” he said. 

You felt yourself start to burn, your chest and your lower parts all tingling with a sudden hot desire that increased tenfold when he closed his eyes, his forehead falling onto yours. 

“Please,” he begged, his grip on you not loosening. 

“Okay,” you breathed, and that was all that was needed. He let out a growl that sounded near animalistic, pulling your clothes off a piece at a time. Before you knew it, his arms were wrapped around your naked body, pulling you close to him as he kissed you. Deep, deeper...the kiss almost had it's own flavor, a quiet, burning ecstasy all on it's own. You were shoved in-between his ragged, breathing chest and the door, his hands making burning circles on your skin. When he finally pulled away from the kiss, his fingers reached up, stroking your chest lightly. His eyes were focused on the way your body responded, as if he were experimenting with you. His tongue moved to your nipples once more, sucking softly and the clenching pleasure you felt elicited a soft moan. His mouth smiled, his tongue still moving over your body. You felt your knees turning to jelly, leaning against the door for support. He moved down your body, dropping to his knees as he prodded your legs apart with delicate fingers. You shivered. Feeling his hot breath so close against you...it made your mind go numb. He was staring up at you, his eyes enraptured in an expression you could only call “worship”. His tongue darted onto your inner thigh and you hissed sharply, your pussy quivering. You were sweating already, letting out small sounds of pleasure the closer he got to your opening. 

“Sh-shit Papyrus,” you breathed, “I don't know how long I can stand...” 

His eye flashed and he moaned, his words tickling your folds, “Stand. I want to taste you.” 

“Oh fuck,” you moaned, throwing your head back. His tongue traced around you, dancing directly around it teasingly. You felt yourself shaking. Your head was spinning from desire and an insane drive to fuck him. Your instincts were wild, your pulse beating like a drum.

His tongue slid up your legs, finally dipping into you. You let out a heated whimper, your hands reaching down to grasp the top of his skull, pulling him closer into yourself. He moaned again and his voice vibrated against you. His tongue flicked up and down your folds in a circle, dipping inside of you and coming back out playfully. 

“F-fuck,” you moaned, bending down, reflexively pulling away from him. It was too much...He growled, glancing up at you with a wild look in his eyes. You only had time for a short gasp before he had stood up and picked you up off the ground, walking across the room to throw you onto the couch. He crept on top of you, putting a possessive hand over your stomach, pushing you into the couch. 

“Try to pull away,” he breathed, “I dare you.” His tongue was on you again, sucking at your folds gently. Your hips bucked into him and he responded in kind, curving his head to meet you. His tongue was so wet and warm against you, and the touches started to blend together, becoming a single sensation that buzzed and rose in intensity with every second. Your toes curled and your head was thrown back in a building passion. The heat inside of you began to pool, rising like a rapid water level. He moaned your name into your pussy, his breath catching, and you lost it. 

You screamed as it flowed through you, moving up and down your body in intense waves of pleasure. Your mind buzzed with pure, unadulterated ecstasy, leaving your brain scattered. Your body curled into itself, pulling you into your core and beating a tribal rhythm. You whimpered as the orgasm continued longer than you were used to, leaving traces of sensitivity all over your body. Finally opening your eyes, you could see Papyrus watching you intensely, his eyes lidded, a bewildered smile on his face. You saw something shining in front of him, something white and glimmering. It was small and tender, in the shape of a heart. It flickered and jolted when Papyrus noticed it. 

“I...I'm sorry,” he breathed, his eyes growing wide in shock, and it dissipated. 

You shivered, then sat up. Papyrus seemed distressed. He sat up on the couch, a blush evident on his cheeks. 

“I didn't mean for that to happen,” he implored, refusing to look at you. 

You reached up, your fingers tracing his cheek and he flinched away. 

“Paps, what was that?” 

Papyrus refused to answer you. It looked like he was about to cry. 

“Paps...” you implored, drawing him near. 

He took a shuddering breath against you, “It...was my soul. I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I was just so happy.” 

Your heart fluttered and you kissed him. 

“I don't really know what it means for your soul to come out like that, but if it means I make you happy, how can it be a bad thing?” 

He shook his head, his eyes finally moving to meet yours. 

“It's not a bad thing it's just, very personal. Monsters don't share that until...” 

You were beginning to understand. At least vaguely. 

“I don't want you to feel uncomfortable Papyrus, but if that's what you're feeling...”

He shook his head wildly, “You don't understand what you're saying. It's not just...” his voice trailed away and you felt confused, but you rubbed his arms and he leaned into your touch. 

“Okay. Then let's talk about this later,” you promised, a small smile on your face. He gave you a gratified expression, then jolted as your hands slipped down his pants to stroke his pubic bone.  
“Mmf,” he moaned in surprise, and you curled your fingers, lightly scraping your nails across him. You quickly pulled down his pants and your mouth replaced your fingers, licking circles into his lower bones. His shaking body began vibrating with a subtle magic that began collecting close to your mouth. You licked around it, humming contentedly. 

“_____ you feel so amazing,” he sighed, his body relaxing and any stress that had been collected disappearing. When his dick was fully formed you toyed with it, tonguing the bottom of the shaft playfully, enjoying the short gasps and hisses you pulled from him. He bucked into you but you pulled away, your eyes glancing up lazily. You were going to take your time with this. You were going to enjoy it. 

His dick started to throb, and you delicately nipped at the side of his shaft with your lips. You were rewarded with a soft noise that turned into a moan when you pulled away. He hissed your name, his eyes begging you, but you weren't done with him yet. 

You slid your tongue up and down his shaft, pushing the dick up into his pubic bone so that it rubbed against himself and your tongue. He whimpered, his eyes shut tightly closed as he felt every touch and every movement you put on him. Slowly, you started to lick the sides of his head, feeling along the bumps and grooves and driving him into a frenzy. His fingers came down to entwine with your hair, and you felt him wantingly pushing against your head, his body crying out for release. 

“What do you want me to do Papyrus?” you whispered and he flinched against your breath. 

“Please,” was all he managed to choke out, “I can't take this anymore.” 

You smiled before setting your lips around the head of his dick. You pressed hard against it, sucking back tightly as you slid yourself down him painfully slow. He grabbed at your neck, holding on tightly. He bucked into you and his dick was shoved down your throat, making you gag. 

“S-sorry,” he moaned. He was trying so hard for you. So very hard. 

You sucked on him hard, pulling away, your cool fingers replacing your mouth. He yelped at your cold touch, then rocked into you as you started to stroke him. Your tongue stayed on his head, licking at his most sensitive areas as you pumped him, your fingers becoming slick with your saliva and his own juices. You rubbed at him, encouraged by the labored moans he gave you. His hand tightened at the back of your neck, his body stiffening. 

He growled, his body beginning to act on it's own. He bucked into you, your mouth filling with his dick and he thrusted hard, deep into your throat. You felt his cum sliding into you and you swallowed around him, feeling him recoil as your touches became too much. You drew out his orgasm as long as you could, nipping at him suggestively until he finally collapsed against the couch, his dick gone. 

He opened his eyes and enveloped you in a sudden hug, pulling down so that you both fell onto your sides with a flop. You giggled, and he smiled at your laugh, his face cuddling into your chest. 

“You're so warm,” he said softly.

“Mmm,” was all you managed. 

“I've been wanting that for a long time,” he sighed. You wrapped your arms around his head, wishing that the two of you could be closer than physical touch permitted. 

“I can hear your heart beating,” he whispered, a sense of wonder in his voice. 

“Hmmm” you hummed in reply and he glanced up, his eyes meeting yours. You shared a quiet, happy look with him and reveled in how happy you made each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel better about this nsfw chapter than I did about the previous one.


	14. Chapter 14: A Natural Disaster

There still were not any damn groceries in their fridge. 

“Do you just never buy groceries?” you called accusingly. 

“I buy and make spaghetti,” Papyrus called back, but there were no leftovers in the fridge except the small container of spaghetti you'd seen before you left. In fact, the fridge had started stinking. You'd probably end up cleaning it. 

You sighed, grabbing the leftover pizza from last night and popping open the container. 

“What are you doing?” Papyrus said, suddenly beside you. 

“Jeez!” you jolted, almost dropping the box, “You're as bad as your brother!” 

Papyrus drew himself up, placing his hands on his hips, “Us skeletons are famous because of our adept sneaking ability.”

You snorted, grabbing a pizza slice and taking a bite out of it. Papyrus' face scrunched in disgust. 

“What? You don't like cold pizza?” you asked, closing the fridge door with your hip. 

“For breakfast?” he roared. 

“For every meal,” you corrected and Paps rolled his eyes. 

“Oh come on,” you defended, “Don't try and pretend like you haven't eaten spaghetti for breakfast at some point.” 

Papyrus opened his mouth, then closed it, his fingers rubbing his chin thoughtfully. 

“That is a good point. Perhaps pizza for breakfast is not such a bad thing.” 

“Here,” you offered, holding out your slice. 

Papyrus leaned in and took a bite, and you took advantage of his moment of weakness to plant a kiss on his cheek. 

“gross,” said a voice behind you. You managed not to jump and scream this time, spinning on your heel angrily. 

“How many times are you gonna keep popping in like this?” you scolded the suddenly appearing Sans. 

“for as long as it bugs you,” Sans said, grinning lazily. He approached and snagged a piece of pizza from the to-go box. 

“How did the meeting go?” Papyrus asked after swallowing his bite of pizza. 

“it was cut short. apparently something major happened in velimont. i zipped home to try to catch it on the news.”

He walked back into the living room, waving his pizza as he talked. 

“Something major?” you asked. 

“some sort of natural disaster,” he answered, flipping on the TV. It was already on a news broadcast. You sat down next to Sans and Papyrus sat down next to you, the three of you watching the TV intently. There had been a massive flood in Velimont. Specifically in the RiverRocks area. You felt your gut wrench. 

“My Aunt and her family lives in that area,” you said breathlessly, whipping out your phone. Sans and Papyrus both watched you as you called a number, your foot impatiently tapping on the floor. 

It went to voicemail. 

“Hey Aunt Daria, this is _____,” you spoke into the answering machine, “I'm calling because I just heard about the flood and I wanted to make sure you guys were all right. Call me or shoot me a text when you can. Stay safe.” You closed the phone. 

“Ugh, that makes me really nervous,” you said. 

“is this aunt daria nicer than miss witch?” Sans asked, his gaze going back to the destruction on the TV. 

“A lot nicer,” you said, “She took care of me for almost a year when my parents were going through their divorce.” 

You hesitated. 

“She's got two little kids,” you said, your voice growing fearful. Floods happened all the time in Velimont. You remembered bringing up furniture from the rooms downstairs up into the bedrooms while water seeped from underneath your Aunt's doorway. You had been so young then, you thought it was fun. It had destroyed your Aunt and Uncle's carpet and had introduced a mold problem that they could never quite seem to get out. But that had just been a little flood. 

This was huge.

“Something like this could trap a family,” you whispered, mostly to yourself. You saw Sans and Papyrus eye each other, but you didn't take much notice of it. You watched the TV, your mind racing with endless possibilities, each one more gruesome than the last. You hardly even noticed when Sans' phone went off or when Papyrus and Sans walked into the kitchen and began talking in low voices. 

After a while, once the information began to uselessly repeat, you turned the TV off and drifted over to them. Sans was on the phone, talking. Papyrus sat at the table, bent over some papers. You slipped into the chair beside him and looked down at the papers. It was a hastily scribbled list of names that were being checked off one by one. You eyed him questioningly and Papyrus whispered so as not to disturb Sans. 

“There is a large group of monsters going over to Velimont. They called us about it and asked us to call any friends we know to go with them.”

“Going over to Velimont?” you repeated, not quite catching on. 

“Apparently there are a lot of families and children and innocent people who have lost their homes in this flood,” Papyrus said sadly, “But us monsters are excellent at hospitality! We will keep everyone safe and warm until the city can start repairing.” 

You felt a bit speechless. Sans ended his conversation.

“yeah okay. see you there then.” He hung up the phone. 

“cross out the vulkin family. they're coming too,” he said to Papyrus. Papyrus did so, then read off the next name on the list. 

“Grillby,” he said, eyeing Sans meaningfully. 

“maybe...not grillby...” Sans answered warily. 

“Isn't that his decision?” Papyrus said, and Sans sighed heavily.

“yeah, guess you're right bro.”

“I am always right!” Papyrus crowed. You watched the both of them.

Sans pressed a button. Seemed Grillby was on his quick dial.

“hey grillbz,” sans said. He stood in silence for a moment, listening to whatever the other monster had to say. 

“so you're going...” he said, his voice sounding concerned. He listened a bit longer, “yeah I understand. just...be careful, kay bud?” He turned the phone off once more. 

“grillby's going too,” he said with a sigh. You looked at the list and saw that every line had been crossed out so far. 

“Next is...” Papyrus stopped abruptly, gripping the sheet of paper tightly. Sans walked over and let out a breath. 

“no, no way in hell could i call them.” You leaned over and froze. Madjick. You recalled the name from the news broadcast a while ago. 

“This is...” you said breathlessly.

“The family of one of the monsters that got dusted,” Papyrus answered, a hint of anger hiding in his voice. 

“we could just skip them...” Sans offered.   
Papyrus shook his head, opening his palm in front of Sans. Sans made a face, but put the phone in Papyrus' hand, turning away. Papyrus quickly dialed in a number, too quick for him to double think. 

“Hello...Mrs. MadJick?” there was a voice on the other end, but you couldn't make out the words. Papyrus began to sweat, his other hand fiddling with his shirt. 

“I was calling because...there was a flood in a nearby town. A lot of human families are out of a house right now and...”

The voice on the other end rose in intensity. He grit his teeth, his eyes sliding over to you, almost in a plea for help. 

“Yes I understand how you're feeling,” he said softly, “I just wanted to let you know.” The voice seemed to soften. 

“Thank you ma'am,” he finished politely, “Goodbye.” Papyrus clicked the phone off and handed it back to Sans. He then grabbed the pencil and erased Madjick from the list. 

“The Madjick family will not be coming,” he said. 

“we shouldn't have called them,” Sans accused. 

“It was their right to decide,” Papyrus said decisively, though you could tell there was a look of regret on his face. 

The calling continued for a while and eventually you realized that you were gonna have to get the boys lunch.

“I'm gonna go get something to eat,” you said, standing up from the table. The skeletons were too busy to truly understand what you meant by that. Hoping that they were too distracted to notice, you slipped out the front door and made your way to the car. You were just grabbing something to eat, there was no way you could be in danger from that. You slipped into the driver's seat and started the ignition. Not two minutes down the road, you got a call from Sans. 

“and just what in the hell do you think you're doing?” his voice resounded, sounding angrier than you had ever heard before. 

“I'm grabbing the three of us lunch, like I said,” you replied, fully aware that you had misled them, but too stubborn to admit it. 

You heard Papyrus' voice.

“Tell her that I am very upset with her!” 

“i think she heard bro,” Sans said. 

“Tell Papyrus that he won't be upset after I grab him a meatball footlong,” you said. 

“you're playing a dangerous game. how do you know the whole gang of anti-monster nuts aren't waiting outside to blow up your car as you drive?” the voice shifted from one ear to the other as Sans popped right into the passenger seat of your car. 

“Seriously? I'm not allowed to go to fucking Subway without a chaperon?” you bemoaned, “what are you two going to do when I go back to work? Babysit me there?” 

“It is not babysitting! It is protection!” Papyrus said into the phone and you flinched at how loud his voice was. 

“I knew what I was getting into when I decided to hang out with you,” you responded, “And I knew exactly what I was getting into when I held that interview. I took that responsibility upon myself, not upon you two knuckleheads.” 

“Still...” Papyrus said, sounding very uncomfortable. 

“if you don't like people hovering, don't put yourself in these kinds of situations,” Sans said, “we'll cross the “going to work” bridge when we come to it but for now i'm going to subway with you.”

You pouted.

“Exactly!” Papyrus agreed and you pouted some more.

“Fine, fine. Babysit me then, see if I care. Goodbye Papyrus.”

“See you soon!” he replied cheerfully and you exited the call. 

“what's your deal?” Sans asked, kicking back your passenger seat so that he was almost laying down. 

“I just don't wanna be any more trouble than I'm worth,” you muttered, setting the phone down and focusing on driving. 

“heh, i guess i can understand,” he said, his eyes closing. 

“What's your deal?” you asked, turning the question back on him. 

“whadya mean?” 

“How can the monsters...be so supportive. After the core?” 

“those families weren't the ones who did it,” Sans said, his tone serious, “and even if they did, their children sure didn't. prejudiced or not, they're still people, and they still deserve to be safe.” 

You were about to say something when your phone rang once more. Sans snatched it out of your hands.

“not safe to talk on the phone while driving,” he reprimanded. 

“But you literally JUST called me!” you cried. He payed you no mind and answered the phone for you.

“hello?” he paused, listening to a voice, “she's driving at the moment can i take a message?” His face fell suddenly and he handed the phone over. 

“it's your aunt.”

“Aunt Daria?” you nearly shouted, the relief in your heart spilling out into your voice. 

“Yes my dear! We are all safe!” Your Aunt's voice sounded tired, but you could hear the smile shining through it. 

“Thank god!” you hissed, feeling as if you just let out a breath you'd been holding. 

“______, we were saved by monsters!” you heard a little voice chatter excitedly. You recognized that voice as your younger cousin, Belle. 

“Monsters?” you asked, looking at Sans out of the corner of your eye. He was laying down in the seat once more, his arms pulled back behind him. 

“Oh...” your Aunt muttered, “Y-yes. We were trapped on the roof. The radio said to hang tight for a while, and we were expecting to stay there until late tonight, but a group of monsters has been going around and saving people left and right! It's amazing!” 

You felt yourself smiling like crazy. 

“That's so great. Where are you guys now?”

“Everyone's camped at the Mootshilm Park...you know, the one on top of the hill? Never much liked that park, but it sure did come in handy.” 

You did not actually know what park she was even talking about, but you gave a polite “uh-huh” to let her know you cared. 

“tell her that we'll be there by tonight,” Sans pressed. You looked at him in surprise, then excitement. 

“We're gonna come help things out, Aunt Daria. We should be there by tonight.” 

“We?” your Aunt called, “I already called your Mom and she said she couldn't risk coming out.” You bit your tongue at that, choosing not to call your Mother a bad word. 

“I and my friends,” you added and she seemed happy, “You guys need anything?” 

“Well, actually...” she said, sounding a bit embarrassed. Sans had somehow brought out a sheet of paper and a pencil and was looking at you, waiting. You began to list off the items your Aunt asked for and Sans copied them down dutifully. Eventually you pulled into Subway, but you sat in the car, continuing to list the items until finally she was done. 

“I can pay you back for everything, my dear,” she said, “Thank you so much for this!” 

“Don't mention it. Stay safe. Tell Roy and Belle I said hi.” 

Your Aunt said goodbye, promising she would. You hung up the phone, your head dropping down onto the driving wheel. 

“looks like we've got some shopping to do,” Sans said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Might be a couple more days till I get some more chapters out. I'm on a real tight schedule right now. But I hope you guys enjoy!


	15. Chapter 15: I'm Flying Jack

“I agree that the meatball sub was a good idea,” Papyrus said, after swallowing a big bite of sandwich. You didn't hide your smug grin. 

“I am always right you know,” you said. 

“N-no,” Papyrus said indignantly, “I'm always right.”

“Then why were you wrong about the meatball sub?” you asked smartly, and Papyrus started steaming. 

“That has nothing to do with...just...shut up,” he muttered and you laughed. Sans was sitting on the kitchen counter, kicking his feet like a child too short to sit in a big boy chair. He didn't input anything into the conversation, just ate his sandwich and poured over the shopping list he had written down. 

“So what's our game plan?” you asked, stuffing the last bite of sandwich into your mouth. 

“Game plan?” Papyrus asked. 

“Like...our strategy,” you offered. 

“Oh! Well...I suppose you and I will go shopping for the items. I want Sans to rest because he has been teleporting so much lately.” 

You didn't know that using magic could tire a monster out. You recalled how exhausted Sans had been after lifting Sans and Undyne...

“Yeah...good idea,” you said. 

“afther you guys are done, we'll gather all our ithems and theleport tho the park,” Sans said, his mouth full of food. 

“Sans that is disgusting!” Papyrus bemoaned. You laughed at Papyrus' reaction.

“Do not laugh _____! It will only encourage him!” 

“You are pretty gross Sans,” you relented. 

He shrugged, “right back at chew,” he said, emphasizing the pun. 

“Arg!” Papyrus cried in desperation, “Let's just go! I'll eat in the car!” 

You giggled a bit harder than normal, feeling the stress from the day dissipate just a bit. Sans gave you a big smile and a wave as you left. 

“stay safe guyth,” he called to your backs. 

You and Papyrus piled into your car, you sliding into the driver's seat before he could ask. Not that his driving was bad or anything...but you couldn't afford to get a ticket right now. Money and time weren't free and you had little of both at the moment. 

Papyrus commandeered the radio and the two of you finally found a song you could sing together. And sing you did. You had trouble staying on key (singing had never been a strong suit of yours), but you sang loudly anyways. Papyrus actually had a great voice. He was louder than you could ever hope to be, and yet he stayed on key, his voice echoing around the car until it almost hurt your ears. You drummed out the breakdown onto the driver's wheel and hummed along to the guitar. Papyrus played the air guitar, a big goofy grin on his face as the two of you got into it. 

“Woah-oh! Woah-ah!” you started singing along with the background voices as Papyrus sang the lead. You both finished off the song with the high screeching note that neither of you could really reach but you sure as hell rocked anyways. 

“Yeah!” you shouted to the last drum beat and Papyrus laughed. 

“That was fun,” he said, surfing the radio for another song. 

“Hey Paps, have you ever thought about being an actor?” you asked, letting your mind wander. 

“An actor?” he queried. 

“Yeah. Like in the theater or something. You've got a great voice and you're so...” what was the word you were looking for?

“...dramatic.” you finished. 

“I've never really thought about it,” he said, his eyes glancing outside the window as he started to think. 

“I was in a play once. It's lots of fun!”

“You didn't tell me that you were a famous actor!” he gasped. You stared at him for a minute, tempted to let his idea continue. 

“Nah it was just community theater. But I did get a date out of it so that was cool.” 

He grumbled low enough that you couldn't hear him and you giggled once more. After humming along to different songs for a while, you finally made it to the grocery store. You snagged a basket on the way in the doors and pushed it along, pulling out the list and scanning it. You always tried to reorganize the list in your head to the items that were grouped close together in the store. After a few minutes of studying, you pushed the cart and the wheels started sqeaking. 

“Come on Paps! We're headed to the bread aisle!”   
“Yes captain!” 

You were being careful, making yourself as small as possible so as not to get in anybody's way. That seemed to bug Papyrus. He grabbed the basket from you with a grin as soon as you turned into aisle number 4. 

“Let me lead the way,” he said. 

You shrugged, not really caring. 

You started caring pretty fast when he took off at a run, jumped and pulled his feet onto the bottom of the cart, barreling down the aisle like a bullet. 

“Nye-heh-heeeeh!” he shouted as he whizzed away from you. 

“Papyrus!” you shouted, feeling mortified at first. He slowed it before he went zooming out the end of the aisle. Slowly, he turned the basket around and started walking back...so incredibly slow. 

“Papyrus don't you dare...” you gasped, before he took off at a run again, jumping onto the wire bottom, pulling his weight forward so as to keep balance as the cart went zooming towards you down the aisle. 

It looked fucking hilarious. You burst into laughter as he skid the cart to a stop right in front of you, a look of smug pride emanating from his face. 

“45 seconds!” he crowed. 

“What?” you asked through your giggles. 

“45 seconds to get to the end of the aisle and back. I bet you can't do better,” he said, a sing-song to his voice, like when your younger sister used to tease you: “Na-ne-na-ne-boo-boo”. 

You straightened. The sing-song rhythm dare was almost as bad as a double dog dare. You knew you couldn't back down from this one. Your honor depended on it. You glanced around, there weren't anybody in aisle 4 but the two of you, and the people passing didn't really glance around much. You marched up to that preening bastard and grabbed the cart from him. 

“Watch this,” you grinned, before taking a running start. Running, running, glide! You balanced like an ice skater as the wheels whizzed under you, squeak-squeak-squeaking as every half-second passed. You felt yourself straighten, held aloft by gravity and movement and pure badassery. Your hair billowed behind you, your eyes glistened with triumph. With a careful movement, you pulled your arms out to the sides.

I'm flying Jack, you thought with a smile. 

The cart smashed into the deli shelf. You had sailed past the end of the aisle, and with a jolt you felt yourself really start flying. Time slowed down and you glanced behind you. Papyrus was shouting something, running forward. A family of five stood directly to your right, watching you arch through the air like you were poor little Shamu at a seaworld show. A grocery store worker watched you a little ways down the store, his eyes glazed and uncaring. 

And in a tumbling moment, you found yourself upside down, your legs dangling out of the cart and your head squished into the wire mesh of the basket. Two bony hands wrapped around your waist, picking you straight up out of the cart.

“____! Are you okay?” he asked, looking panicked. 

“Yeah,” you said, feeling a blush begin. You hadn't damaged the shelf. You hadn't spilled anything except your dignity...all over the floor...

You and Papyrus sheepishly ducked back into aisle 4 before exploding into laughter. You laughed so hard you almost started crying as the two of you bewailed your unfortunate predicament. 

* * *

The rest of the shopping trip went quite nicely!

After the time you'd spent fooling around, you and Papyrus had hurriedly carted all the groceries. It took a while, and by the end of it you were pretty tired. But giggling and cracking jokes with Paps had made it much more fun than usual. You packed it all into your tiny car and drove back to the house, sobering up significantly as a news broadcast started on the radio. 

“And now an update on Velimont. The rescue teams were surprised as hundreds of the newly settled monsters arrived on the scene of the devastating flood at Velimont, managing to rescue nearly every person who had been trapped. The survivors are stationed at different safe points throughout the city, and the monsters have gone above and beyond, tending to the wounded and distributing food and water, building temporary shelters and keeping up morale. This kind-hearted service will not go unnoticed by the government. The President himself said in a brief speech to the presses:”

The voice cut away to a grainy recording of the President talking.

“In light of the recent atrocities laid upon the monster race, humankind is indebted to the Monsters for their bravery and self-sacrifice.”

“This “bravery and self-sacrifice” of the monsters can be seen even within the families that have so recently been betrayed. The Madjick family, who recently lost a son to the Core Bombings, was seen tending to the wounded. When asked, the mother of the deceased boy said,

“I couldn't sit by and watch souls be in pain, or watch children go hungry. It doesn't matter what people's opinions are...all lives matter, and should be honored.” 

You had to stop yourself from crying. You glanced over at Papyrus and saw his fist clenched, his face turned away from you. 

“We don't deserve you,” you breathed, clearing your throat as you pushed the tears away. Driving while crying wasn't safe. 

You made it to the house and Papyrus immediately told Sans what had happened.

“Shit man...I knew monsters were nice...but I wouldn't have been able to do that.” 

You nodded solemnly. 

The three of you got all of your things together. Regretfully you turned off your laptop and set it in a safe place in your room. You hadn't been able to get a gaming session in since forever...and it looked like you wouldn't be able to for a while yet. You shook your head sadly, but walked out with your luggage. You weren't very sure how long you guys would be gone, so you packed for a week...just in case. 

Hauling your luggage out of the bedroom, you heard Sans talking with Papyrus.

“i can probably just get the car there.”

“Sans I don't want you hurting yourself. It's fine if we drive.” 

“____ has family in this flood, Pap. and those people are depending on us for supplies. you really wanna spare their comfort and possible health just for a tiny risk?”

“It's not tiny! But I understand what you mean. It's up to you, brother.” Papyrus didn't sound very happy. You took a breath, immediately feeling guilty. The boys jolted as you rounded the corner. 

“Hey, this is the last of it,” you said, pulling the suitcase behind you. 

“cool. there's just enough space left,” Sans replied. 

Papyrus shuffled around the kitchen, as if there was something he wanted to say. But after a few seconds he walked out of the front door. You gathered up the last of your things, watching Sans out of the corner of your eye. He looked tired. Really tired. Had he gotten any rest today at all? 

Eventually he walked out, glancing at you on the way. 

“lock the door on your way out,” he muttered. Not having any other reason to stay, you followed him and locked the door behind you, closing it firmly. The three of you packed into the car, squishing into the small spaces left after Sans had somehow fit every single thing you needed into your tiny car. It was all stacked like tetris pieces, and you were certain that if you pulled out a single piece it would all come crashing down on you. 

Sans drove, pulling out of the driveway and speeding down the street. You glanced out the window, watching the scenery flicker by. This time you managed to catch different bits and pieces of it. A tree here...a road sign there. Was he traveling super fast? Or just blipping in and out? You couldn't really tell with how blurry everything was. 

Soon enough you managed to focus on a treeline, just as Sans collapsed against the driver's wheel. 

“Sans!” Papyrus shouted, grabbing at the wheel to keep it from veering off the steep road that you had ended up on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoo-boy. Sorry for the wait folks. I had the craziest two weeks of my life, filled with tests and chores and errands and everything that could possibly get in the way of me and my writing. Sorry for not keeping to schedule! I feel really bad about it, but it shouldn't happen again cause I'm back to my normal schedule. :) Hope you guys enjoyed! Let me know what you think! And if you wanna conversate with me about the story, feel free to shoot me a message on my tumblr, Gentlelovefanfic.tumblr.com"!

**Author's Note:**

> Aiming for two chapters a week. Will probably add more as I get the free time.


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